Zero Hour
by MASC
Summary: When old enemies unite with a cosmic entity to bring down civilization, Sakura strikes back with an alliance all her own. By reassembling her old army and teaming with the likes of Tokyo Mew Mew and others, Sakura engages in her biggest battle ever.
1. Six Years Later

_**A/N: All right, folks. I'm back for another go at this whole writing thing. Those of you who are familiar with my work, thanks for coming back. Those of you who are new, welcome and be prepared to cry. For what reason, I don't know. Please note this is the continuation and perhaps the finale of the "Next Crusade", "Tokyo Knights" and "Nemesis" storylines, so it might help to read them from the beginning. Or not. It's all good. This is the biggest CCS story I've ever come up with so be prepared for a few surprises and stuff you wouldn't normally find in a CCS fic. And with all that said, let's move on!**_

_**ALSO: To keep up with the spirit of "The Next Crusade" this story will also become a songfic later on. And as always, more movie references/quotes/parodies or whatever the hell you wanna call them. **_

_**DISCLAIMER: CCS belongs to blah, blah, blah. Let's just get it over with…**_

_**PROLOGUE: **_

According to legend, the earth was created in six days. All the basics of life were covered. Land, sea, air, day, night and the existence of man. But somewhere within that story lies a secret or perhaps a theory that no one has yet to solve. The barriers of time and space have always been studied and researched but never before have they been breached thoroughly to the point of actually crossing them over.

In other words, time travel and dimension crossing have been spoken about and revered for many years but have always been proclaimed as impossible feats to achieve. Impossible for a mere human, perhaps. But not for one special young girl. For her, the art of time travel is well-known to her, having gone back into the past several times before. But the idea of dimension crossing is one that she will soon discover.

Imagine an entity from another planet or, rather, another star system. A being of pure omnipotence that it has the means to travel through time, either forward or back, and can even cross dimensions and play out several scenarios with shifted realities. Now imagine that same being but with the intention to use these abilities not for the benefit of mankind. But for its destruction.

A turning point is about to be made for one young girl. Old enemies will unite. Realities will shift. And dimensions will cross. The laws of time and space will be put to the test as well as her strength, will and determination. But hey. It's all in a day's work, huh?

**Card Captor Sakura **

**Z E R 0 - H Ø U R**

On a far off planet, away from our own solar system, it approached slowly. With a dark funnel of pure energy, the entity let off a thunderous--

_**BOOM! **_

… On another planet, still away from our own solar system, a powerful entity enwrapped itself around the--

_**BOOM! **_

…Okay… Further away from the last two planets that were recently destroyed, an omnipotent presence of pure evil and malice arrived on a planet that--

_**BOOM! **_

…God damn it! Screw it. You get the idea. Let's go to Earth.

**Earth**

Yes, that's more like it. Anyway…

Above the planet's atmosphere, a small yet noticeable explosion occurred. And from the occurrence, several meteor-encrusted orbs flew out and rained down on various parts of the planet.

Some landed safely in deserts, others in remote jungles from civilization and most in bodies of water. Wherever they landed, it was clear that nobody would become aware of their presence. At least not now, anyway.

**Somewhere in Africa**

Within a small village, a modestly built hut stands in the center as residents walk on by. Onlookers poke their heads in from an opening but stay absolutely quiet. They watch as a lightly scented trail of smoke lingers out of the room and blows into their faces.

A middle aged man in a white dashiki and matching kufi hat kneeled before a shrine, where he waved an incense stick and prayed aloud. His eyes were closed and his movements were sporadic, leaving some of the onlookers confused.

After a moment, Imamu "Pops" Amadi, opened his eyes and sensed something that was highly irregular. With a gasp, he turned to one of his small sculptures then eyeballed the wall of pictures in front of him. Confused, the old man stood up on his feet and removed his hat to wipe the sweat off his shiny bald head.

"This isn't good." He shook his head. "Not good at all."

"Grandfather?" A young girl walked in. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, Akinyi… everything's fine."

"You were breathing heavily. Are you sure?"

"Of course. I… I have to go back to England soon." He put his hat back on and approached his granddaughter with a smile. "You stay here with your family. When your parents return from the city, I will have already informed them."

The young girl wrapped her arms around the old man. "You're going to get into more trouble, aren't you?"

"No, of course not. I just have to take care of some business. That's all."

"Magic business?"

"…Yes." The old man nodded as he left the room, aware of the dangers that lied ahead.

**London, England**

Within a great hall of an unidentified building, a group of men in black coats wandered around with their eyes alert for anything suspicious. The floors were wet and along the path they walked on, statues of nameless figures stood proudly by as the group of wizards continued to keep a sharp watch. The group's leader, an old man with gray hair and matching goatee and black fedora stuck his wand out as his followers watched.

"Illuminate." He calmly said as a bright flash lit up the room, causing several cloaked beings to scatter about.

"There they are!" One of the wizards exclaimed.

"After them." The old man said. "They can't escape."

The men in coats quickly ran down the halls of the building and sent forth a barrage of magic attacks in an attempt to bring down the cloaked figures. After several misses, the air was beginning to fill with smoke from the magic's after effects.

"I got one!" One of the coats said as he pulled one of the dark creature's away.

The man in the cloak snarled at his captor, revealing a set of razor sharp teeth and deathly pale eyes. He grabbed the wizard by the face and ripped it to shreds with a single pull. Then, using the man's wand, the evil being pointed it at his opponent's head and shot him dead with a fatal hex.

"No!" The old man shouted as he unleashed a magic attack of his own. "_Destrua!" _

The figure in the cloak managed to evade the old wizard's energy blasts and vanish from sight within a cloud of black smoke. The wizards then rushed over to their fallen comrade but it was too late.

James Elliot Graham, former accountant and full-time wizard, sighed heavily and removed his hat. "Damn. There's no stopping them now."

"Sir?" One of the men looked confused. "You don't think--"

"I do." Graham interrupted. "And there's only one place we can go to now. Let's just pray we'll make it in time."

With all of that said, Graham and his fellow wizards slowly carried the body out of the old museum and disappeared within a flash of light.

**Tomoeda**

Inside a heavily guarded prison facility, a grizzly Hiroshi Kanaye stood at a desk where he filled out a few release forms. After signing his name, his belongings were returned in a small box that appeared to be battered and weather damaged.

"What happened to my belongings?" He asked the prison clerk.

"Huh?" He looked up and noticed the tattered box. "Oh. Storm must have caused a leak."

"What?"

"Hey, you're lucky to be left with _that_. After all the bullshit you pulled, I'm surprised you're not checking in to the nearest shelter."

"Thank you." Kanaye grumbled under his breath as he left the building.

Outside the gates of the prison, Kanaye stood along the grass and waited on the curb as several guards remained at their post. After a few minutes, a red sports car pulled up and out popped young Tochigi's face.

"Hello, Mr. Kanaye." The young man greeted.

"Tochigi." Kanaye grinned as he entered the vehicle.

After a few minutes of driving through the downtown district, Tochigi noticed his former boss looking out the windows in awe.

"Nothing's changed." Kanaye simply said. "Six years and… nothing."

"Well nothing, _much_." Tochigi smiled. "A few buildings and other small family owned businesses."

"What about… You know."

"Earl Culver is the sole owner of Kanaye Industries and all affiliates associated with it. He bought your company and merged it with Varicorp. I'm sorry, sir."

"No…" Kanaye shook his head calmly. "That's all right. And what about you?"

"Mr. Culver was kind enough to let us all keep our jobs. He said it would be like nothing ever happened. Just under new management, you know?"

"Yes. I'm glad to hear that."

Later in the afternoon, Kanaye returned to his old penthouse after Tochigi had dropped him off outside the building and explored his living room. With a low sigh, Kanaye dropped himself on the couch and placed his hands over his face.

"Defeated…" He mumbled. "Disgraced… Dead inside."

Several thoughts ran through his mind. The time he had spent in jail could have been longer. After six years of good behavior, the system decided to let him go without realizing the evil intentions he still had.

"Sakura." Kanaye frowned.

The former businessman got back up on his feet and went around the hallway. Descending down a small fleet of stairs, the man revealed a hidden door behind his grandfather clock and entered a brief five digit code. After a few beeps the door slid open and led the man into a secret laboratory, small yet effective.

"Right where I left her." Kanaye grinned as his eyes wandered around the silver room.

On top of a table, a case full of blue test tubes sat still while a disassembled jetpack remained scattered next to a pair of metallic gloves. Beside the gloves, three stands held onto three high-tech masks with different design patterns. Standing alone on the corner was a display case that held a familiar looking black suit and gray cloak. The cabinet next to it held an arsenal of various blades, guns, ammunition and flamethrowers.

Kanaye picked up one of the masks and triggered its infrared lenses. "It's time we settled the score."

* * *

"Why did we agree to this again?" A pilot asked as he steered his jet smoothly along the sky. 

The pilot in the jet behind him spiraled along the clouds and responded through his radio. "Because. We got tired of doing nothing. Remember?"

"I wouldn't exactly say 'nothing'. Just that--"

"Oh, don't. You knew this is what you wanted right from the start so don't even weasel your way out of it now."

"I still can't believe they let us in."

"Me neither."

"It's because of your sister, isn't it?"

"No. We graduated from the top of our class, that's all."

"And because of your sister."

"…Yeah."

As the two jetfighters finished patrolling above the ocean, a burst of light exploded within a nearby cloud and caught their attention.

"Jesus." Said the first pilot. "Did you see that?"

"It wasn't near the city." Replied the other. "So we can rule out any wrongdoing."

"Still. I don't like the looks of that."

"Wait a minute. I'm getting something on my screen."

"Yeah, I see it too."

Just then, several clumps of rock shot forward and tapped the windshields of the two jets as they slowly approached the cloud. After a few moments, the light faded away and the remainder of the clumps fell to the water.

"What the hell was that?" The first pilot radioed.

"I don't know." The 2nd turned his head. "We'd better go back."

The two planes looped and immediately headed in the opposite direction towards the air base. A few miles later, the two pilots landed their aircrafts safely in the airfield where members of the Japanese air force scrambled around.

Both pilots then climbed out of their cockpits and descended from the ladders as the maintenance crews took care of the planes. The two then removed their helmets and exchanged glances.

"Do you think they picked it up too?" Touya asked.

"I wouldn't doubt it." Yukito replied as he noticed their superiors approaching them. "Uh-oh. Here they come."

"Kinomoto. Tsukishiro." An American Major nodded at the two. "We picked up an aerial disturbance near the sector you were flying around."

"Yes, sir." Touya confirmed. "We saw it."

"And?"

"Permission to speak freely, sir?"

"Go ahead."

"That was the weirdest and most random shit I'd ever seen in my life… _sir_."

"Given all you've seen considering who your sister is?"

"Oh yeah."

"I'll take your word for it."

"Should we worry about it?" Yukito asked.

"I wouldn't, Lieutenant." Japanese Colonel Haru Kenshin said. "Major Dawkins and I have already gone over the satellite images. Nothing to go crazy over."

"But clumps of rock in midair?" Touya shook his head. "Explosions of light? I don't get it."

"Look at this way." Major Dawkins suggested. "If it turns out to be something bad, we've always got your sister to back us up."

"Thanks… I think."

"How is Sakura, anyway?"

"Engaged!" Yukito exclaimed much to Touya's disgust.

* * *

"Sakura, they're breaking through!" Li yelled as he, Tomoyo and Takashi barricaded a nearby door that was pounding rhythmically. 

"What do we do!?" Tomoyo strained. "They're not backing down!"

"This is it, man!" Takashi wailed. "We're done for! There's no use trying to prevent the inevitable!"

"Eriol, do something!"

The blue-eyed boy poked his head from underneath a desk and held his hand out. "I'm gonna try to seal it off magically. Stay still."

"We already tried that, it didn't work!" Li griped. "Your spells suck, Hiiragizawa!"

"Do you have a better idea!?"

"Sakura!" Naoko called out as she, Rika and Chiharu hid behind a set of blinds. "They're breaking through!"

"I just said that not too long ago!" Li complained.

"Where is that girl!?" Chiharu banged her fist against the wall.

"Wait, why are we hiding?" Rika thought aloud, expecting no answer.

"Sakura!" Li cried as a fist broke through the wood of the door. "Oh, shit! Sakura, a little help! Please!?"

Just then, Sakura entered the classroom with a very somber look on her face. Waving her hand, she mentally opened the door and faced the terror that awaited her. Soon, flashes of light burst onto her body as her friends watched in horror. Ever since Sakura's "resurrection" six years ago, the 18 year old noticed a rapid increase in her own personal paparazzi. The mystery of how she died and suddenly came back to life after six months puzzled everyone but Sakura couldn't let the public know she was brainwashed as the Shadow Reaper. It was a secret that had to be kept. But on the plus side, she's getting married to Li!

"Sakura, look this way!" A photographer called out.

"Sakura, over here!" Yelled another.

"Just smile and wave… smile and wave…" Sakura nervously grinned.

"You know…" Tomoyo started to think. "She doesn't really have to put up with all of this."

"Yeah." Li nodded. "But she says its better than hurting their feelings or something dorky like that." He then sighed dreamily. "… God, I love that about her."

Later that day, after all the calamity, Sakura and Li rested in each other's arms underneath their cherry tree. Y'know… the one from "Nemesis"? The… the dream? Uhh… on the hill? M-remember? 'Member? Yes, no? Whatever. Cherry tree. Both of them. Hugging. Cutesy stuff. And… scene!

"Can't we ever go just _one_ school day without those creeps following me?" Sakura buried her face in her fiancé's chest.

Li kissed her on the forehead and thought for a moment. "Sakura?"

"Yeah?"

"I was wondering."

"About what?"

"Well… there might be a way to get away from it all."

"How?"

A grin spread across his face. "We leave it all behind."

"All of it?" Sakura's eyes widened.

"All of it. When we get married, we can move wherever you want and won't have to worry about a thing. Our children will be safe and as far away from prying eyes and nosy photographers as possible."

"But, Li… I have a responsibility. The cards. Kero and Yue--"

"Will no longer have to be your responsibility. You could leave them for someone else to take over. It's bound to happen one day, anyway. Why hold it off any longer?"

"But the city. They need us."

"Do they?" Li put his forehead against hers. "Sakura, there hasn't been a supernatural or major threat in over five years. The police have done their job and so have we. Face it. We've practically retired."

Sakura then giggled. "Stop. You're making me feel old."

"You're not old. But in a few weeks, you'll be my old _lady_!" He joked.

"Your ball and chain?"

"Sure, why not?"

Playfully, Sakura jabbed Li in the arm which caused him to roll her over along the grass. As they laughed and played, they finally came face to face with each other as Sakura laid on top of him. After a long and passionate kiss, Sakura whispered into her beloved's ear.

"No one's at home, you know." She winked. "Dad's on a business trip and Kero's spending time at Eriol's."

Li suddenly got red in the face. "Wait a minute… do you mean… you've got the house all to yourself?"

Sakura nodded coyly. "Yup."

"Sakura, I don't think… I mean… are you even ready for this?"

"I've been ready, Li. For a long time, we _both_ have."

"Yeah but… shouldn't we wait?"

"For what?"

Another kiss and Li was already onboard. "Okay…"

* * *

"Okay!" Li continued as he sat next to Sakura in her brother's car. "So you've checked your mirrors, adjusted your seat and now…" 

"I… adjust the steering wheel!" Sakura exclaimed as she did just that. "Oh, God. I hope I pass the test this time."

"Just focus and I'm sure you'll do fine. Now go ahead and turn the engine on."

"Right." Sakura turned the key and breathed heavily. "Okay, I can do this… I can do this…"

"Back away slowly… There you go…"

The vehicle slowly backed out of the driveway until it reached the curb. Sakura, checking her mirrors, watched out for any oncoming cars and proceeded to turn the vehicle over to the road.

"You're doing good." Li encouraged her. "Now go ahead and drive around the block."

"Around the block. Right." Sakura nodded.

"Wait, you're still in--!"

"Oh, shit!" Sakura cried as she backed the car into the garage.

As the brakes kicked in, the two banged their heads against the dashboard and immediately groaned in pain. Then a few seconds late, the airbags finally broke out.

"I was gonna say…" Li mumbled as he fought through the cushiony white puff. "…You're still in reverse."

"I'm sorry." Sakura sobbed.

"It's okay, Sakura. We've just got to work on it."

"I'm never gonna pass that test!" She finally wailed.

"Sakura, come on. You're just a little… _slower_ at learning things than others, that's all."

"I failed the test two times already, Li! I don't want to make it three!"

"You won't!"

"I will!" Sakura lied her head against the steering wheel, causing the horn to honk for a long period of time.

Later that night, Sakura patrolled the city as she gently flew along the skies. The wind was cool and refreshing as it blew against her face and there seemed to be no sign of any immediate danger. As she flew, Sakura had time to reflect on her thoughts.

_**Sakura POV: **_

_Li's right. Maybe we should move away once we're married. Give our kids a chance to live normal lives away from the magic. Away from all this God-awful publicity. I'm sure Tomoyo, Eriol and the others will understand. I'll miss them, though. Retirement? At only 18? That's funny. But it sure makes a lot of sense for some reason._

Sakura's thoughts immediately changed as she was suddenly snatched in midair by a mysterious flying figure. She then found herself flinging across the sky at a rapid speed as her assailant rushed to the other side and met her with a massive punch across the face.

"Crap!" Sakura cried as she slammed into a brick wall ten stories high. "Power… card?" Sakura merged with her card in a daze.

As Sakura's body regenerated and gained its superhuman strength, she looked up to see a familiar looking cloaked figure wearing an upgraded facemask with visor and metallic shielding while hovering in midair.

Sakura suddenly panicked. "Wait a minute… who--"

"Hello, Sakura." Hiroshi Kanaye said as the visor retracted to reveal his face. "You broke my heart. Time to run a knife through yours."

"Oh wow…" Sakura mocked. "Like that's supposed to scare me or something?"

Kanaye extended his hand and launched a lengthy stiletto blade, barely missing Sakura's face by a few centimeters.

"Okay, that'll do it!" Sakura gasped as she took to the air again.

"You're not getting away." Kanaye growled as he snuck up behind Sakura and placed his hands around her neck.

Soon the two were flying around town in a wayward spiral until Sakura fused with one of her cards and raised a pillar of rock from the ground. Kanaye immediately broke his grasp on Sakura and flew around the pillar, trying to keep up with the young woman.

"How the hell are you flying!? You don't have any magic!" Sakura called back as she flew under a bridge.

"I'm an inventor, remember!?" He shouted. "Half the things I'm wearing, _you_ once wore yourself! Or don't you remember that, either!?"

"Screw you!"

"Bite me!"

"Freeze!" Sakura called as she unleashed a spiraling ice beam.

Using the flamethrower components in his gauntlets, Kanaye broke through the ice beam and activated a set of razor sharp blades that ran along his sleeves.

"Well _that's_ new!" Sakura ducked from an oncoming blow.

With an uppercut to the face, Kanaye was immediately sidetracked and rolled along the sides of another building. Turning around, Sakura fused with the Fire and smothered her opponent in a blaze of heat.

Kanaye laughed as he punched his way through the flames and grabbed Sakura by the neck. "Fireproof armor, remember!? Oh, wait! You don't!"

Sakura then grabbed hold of the man's arm and twisted it back, remembering how she broke it several years ago. Kanaye wailed in pain as he let go of Sakura and held his arm firmly.

Next, Sakura seized the moment and kicked Kanaye in the back, sending him flying down to the surface. Crashing into a nearby dumpster between an alleyway, Kanaye groaned and stuck his head out as Sakura landed on the ground.

"Aw, did I hurt you?" Sakura teased. "Face it, Kanaye. I beat you six years ago, I can do it again. Why don't you forget about this revenge crap and get on with your life while you still have one?"

"This isn't over, Sakura." Kanaye wheezed.

"It's _been _over."

"You ruined my life."

"You ruined mine first." And with that, Sakura slammed the top on the dumpster and took off flying.

After wiping the filth from his sleeves, Kanaye simply grumbled under his breath. "Bitch."

_**A/N: Trust me. This is just the beginning. You think you're lost now? Wait until I start scratching the surface! But don't worry! All of it will be explained! Just hang in there and keep your cool. Hate mail will be frowned upon, so those of you who have been harassing me can stop it. You know who you are! Yeah, I'm talking to you, Mom! I'll be back next week.**_


	2. Evil Approaches

**CHAPTER TWO**

Inside the locker room of the air base, Touya and Yukito were busy packing their belongings as their fellow pilots wandered around the corridors. After years in Japan's air defense, the two were about to be transferred to a naval base somewhere in America. Their hard work and patience had finally paid off and for these two old friends, they couldn't be happier.

"Where the hell's my Barry Manilow CD!?" Touya's voice strained as he dug through his locker like a dog searching for a bone. "Yuki! You little bastard! Where did you put it!?"

"I didn't take your CD…" A gluttonous Yuki said with a mouthful of banana cream pie as he held the entire pastry in his hand. "…And what's more… I don't even like… that guy…"

"Damn it!"

"Kinomoto! Tsukishiro!" Colonel Kenshin entered the room with two folders in his hand. "Here are your documents."

"Thank you, sir." Touya took his file and handed Yuki his. "I know we won't let you down."

"I know you won't. A nation's army is meant to be strong. But the bonds of friendship you two have displayed over the years have proven to be even stronger. Good luck to both of you. May you prosper in your journeys." 

Touya and Yukito exchanged salutes with their superior and watched as he slowly walked away. After a brief silence, Touya flipped through the pages of his file and rested the document on the small wooden bench as he leaned against the locker with a grin on his face.

"I don't believe it." He started. "Pearl Harbor."

"Yeah…" Yuki continued stuffing his face. "History, man…it's awesome… like this pie… I like pie… did you know that?"

--------

**London**

Inside the newly refurbished cathedral, where the annual wizard/magician/sorcerer's gathering took place, James Elliot Graham and his men slowly walked through the crowds of people and headed in the back room.

The old man removed his hat and placed it on the rack while his assistants took care of his coat and belongings. Graham then took out a book from a nearby shelf and placed it on a table in the center of the room. The men leaned in and watched as their employer rapidly flipped through the pages.

"What are you looking for, sir?" One of the men asked.

"Proof." Graham simply grumbled. "Proof that I'm right. And according to this page… I _am_."

Within the crowds of magicians, who sat before the altar and waited for the meeting to begin, a familiar looking Japanese woman in a white gown leaned against one of the building's pillars and twiddled with an old dagger. Behind her, a young blonde woman in a blue outfit stood in almost the same position and gently ran her fingers along her slim oak wand as her belt strap tightly pressed it down.

"Hello, Suki." The blond woman said in her casual British accent. "It's been a while, yeah?"

"Maya." Suki grinned. "You still seeing that loser American?"

"What American?"

In a puff of smoke, Marvin the Magnificent appeared with his traditional magician's cape and top-hat in their respective places.

"Who are you calling a loser?" Marvin playfully nudged Suki's arm. "I saved a bunch of kids from getting possessed, I thank you very much!"

"Maya?" Suki waited for a reply.

"Okay, so we got married." The blonde wizard caved.

"Yeah! She's mine now!" The children's entertainer wrapped his arm around his bride. "And now I've got _dual _citizenship!"

"If I may have your attention, please!" Graham began the annual event. "I'm sorry to keep you waiting. But this year we have bigger problems to worry about than anything you might have on your mind."

"Like what?" Asked one of the magicians.

"As you all recall, we once served a brave young girl against an unspeakable evil that was thought to have been dead."

"You mean Sakura?" Another magician pondered.

"And Faust." Suki nodded. "Now we know he's _really _dead. So what?" 

"Yes." Graham nodded. "But I'm afraid it doesn't end there."

Everyone started to murmur amongst themselves and exchange glances but Graham managed to keep things quiet for the time being.

"Let me explain." He continued. "For the past few months, my men and I have been tracking down a small group of what appears to be the remainder of Faust's priests. They managed to escape our attack on Alcatraz somehow and I have a suspicion that they are up to no good."

"Yeah, when are they never?" Marvin scoffed.

"By using their knowledge of the dark arts passed on by their master, the Blood Ring priests have been reclaiming old artifacts that seem to hold the key of reanimation. Last night, my men and I followed them into an old museum where they took the Red Cinquedea from its exhibit. We managed to get the drop on them but they were still one step ahead of us, killing one of our own."

"What's with the dagger?" Another random magician asked.

"The Red Cinquedea is an ancient blade that was always described as a key to reincarnation. By cutting the skin of a blood relative of a fallen warrior, the effects would allow that warrior to return to power." Graham then paused for a moment. "I believe they plan to use the Cinquedea as well as the other artifacts they have stolen… to bring back the Dark Lord."

The crowd grew silent and expressionless as they tried to grasp the reality of the situation at hand. At that point Marvin gulped and pulled Maya away by the arm.

"Marvin, what are you doing!?" She pulled back.

"Nuh-uh! No way!" He shook his head in protest. "We're not going through this crap again!"

"What are you talking about?"

"Don't you see, Maya? Old man Graham's gonna try to sucker us into another war! I don't want any part of this!"

"What!? Think of those children you saved! All those people whose lives depended on us and lived because of what we did!"

"What we did is almost get killed!"

"If I may…" Suki butt in. "What's wrong, Marvin? Afraid they might think you're still a loser?"

Marvin gave Suki a dirty look and tightened his top-hat. "Loser? I'll show those bloodsuckers who the _real _loser is! Maya? We're staying!"

"Oh Marvin!" She wrapped her arms around the man's neck.

"The male ego." Suki rolled her eyes. "So easily bruised."

Graham then continued speaking. "If we are to battle this menace again, you know what we must do. You know who we must turn to."

--------

**Tomoeda**

"Why didn't anyone tell me Kanaye was getting out of prison early!?" A frustrated Sakura whined as Tomoyo stitched up the wound on her arm. Sakura sat in a recliner chair in her living room while Tomoyo kept to her side and the boys stood around patiently.

"The judge said ten to twenty years!" Sakura continued. "And six years is _nowhere_ near ten to twenty!"

"…It's close to ten." Kero said as he hovered in midair.

"Oh… weak sauce…" Was all she grumbled.

"It's not like we expected Mr. Kanaye to do this sort of thing, you know." Tomoyo defended as she concentrated on Sakura's small wound.

"Yeah, you're right. Ow!"

"Sorry."

"So you said he was all decked out in armor?" Li asked as he took a seat on one of the couches.

Sakura nodded. "The Shadow Reaper armor. Mask and all. Only this one was different. Everything was so… upgraded."

"And he was flying?" Eriol scratched his head. "How?"

"I'm guessing he was using some sort of gravity generator and stashed it inside his boots or in a pack of some sort."

"Well, one thing's for sure." Li added. "He's out for revenge now. And I don't think he'll stop till he gets what he wants."

"Why didn't you drop him off at the police station when you had the chance?" Tomoyo asked as she began closing the wound.

Sakura sighed and looked out her window. "I don't know. I guess a part of me felt sorry for him. After all, he _did _just get out of jail."

"And look how he spends his first night of freedom." Li reminded Sakura as he got up and walked towards her.

"I know but… I think maybe he just needs to cool off."

"Sakura… you have a compassion towards your enemies like none I've ever seen." Li kneeled before her, placing his hand over hers. "But if you don't be careful, it could come back to hurt you."

"Showing mercy and compassion towards your enemies doesn't signify a point of weakness, Li." Kero butted in. "It's a quality we sometimes lack."

"And a quality I admire Sakura for. But the point is if you don't know who you're saving, you might end up regretting it."

"I can't take a life, Li." Sakura reminded him. "You know that. And I know when I was the Shadow Reaper, I did just that but… I wasn't myself."

"I know."

"And everyday I can still hear their voices ringing inside my head. Begging me for mercy. Pleading for me to spare their lives… and I didn't. I just followed orders and… killed them." Sakura then held back a few tears. "…And it's something I have to live with for the rest of my life. And if word of this ever got out to the media, who knows how the people will perceive me? I can't risk that."

After an awkward pause, Kero held out an empty bowl. "Hey. I know this is a bad time and everything, but we're out of chips and salsa."

"Get it yourself, you porker." Li placed the bowl over the plush's head.

**London**

Back inside the old cathedral, Maya, Marvin and Suki approached Mr. Graham near the altar as the other magicians spoke amongst themselves.

"Mr. Graham." Maya greeted the man. "Are you absolutely sure they're trying to revive Faust?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so." Graham nodded.

"Aw, jeez!" Marvin tugged at his shirt collar. "A British person never lies!"

"What does that mean?"

"Hell, I don't know! That's like saying an American is always right!"

"But they're not." Suki nudged him.

"Hey! USA all the way, babe!"

"Don't make me cut off your--" 

"Suki!" Maya cut the girl off. "Marvin! Please! Now, Mr. Graham… what can we do to help?"

Graham turned his back away from his associates and led the three to another side of the building. "My men and I are heading for Tomoeda to try and cut the Blood Ring off. It is there where we believe they'll try and get to Faust's only living descendant in order to finish the spell."

"So what do you want _us_ to do?" Suki asked.

"I'll need you to get to Sakura and warn her. Meanwhile I'll have everybody wait here until we come up with a plan in case we should fail over there."

"Oh, Japan _again_!?" Marvin moaned. "I swear if I run into that weenie guy again, I'll be pissed!"

Just then, the front doors of the cathedral opened and caught everyone's attention as they saw Pops slowly enter the building. He walked over to his old friends and greeted them until he approached Mr. Graham. The African removed his kufi and gave the old man a serious glare.

"Mr. Graham." He started. "I know about the Blood Ring attempting to revive Faust."

"It's a damned inconvenience." He nodded.

"But I'm afraid things are about to get worse."

"Really?"

"Yes. It's something unusual. Something I've never felt before."

"More demons?"

"No. Something quite worse. It's coming for us, Mr. Graham. And unless we act now, our whole existence will be obliterated."

"Good God. What are you talking about, man?"

"I can't explain it. All I know is that mere magic alone won't help us this time."

"Oy!" Marvin slapped his forehead. "When will it end!?"

**Somewhere In Space**

Shards of metal and rock soared through the nebula and past the stars as the entity shrouded various sections of the cosmos. The evil within could feel the fabric of time and space emanating from Earth's solar system. With its probes already buried beneath the planet's atmosphere, it wouldn't be long until the countdown began…


	3. Strange Findings

**CHAPTER THREE**

The city of Tomoeda was in ruins. Buildings collapsed as gushes of fire and smoke burst through the concrete and cracked the streets. Countless dead bodies lay strewn about as more and more fell before the might of an unknown presence. Sakura stood in the middle of the burning street and watched calmly as her friends became the next victims of this inexplicable presence.

Sakura looked down on the lifeless body of her beloved then faced the shadowy figure as it hovered towards her. Using the Sword, Sakura lashed out against her enemy but found herself being pummeled to the ground mercilessly. The menace in the dark cloak lifted the card mistress and dropped her in the cracks of the street, thus killing her in a pool of endless magma.

Looking over the irreparable damage to the city and the slaughtered people lying about, the phantom removed its hood and revealed a sickly looking Sakura beneath it. Picking up the Sword from the ground, Sakura gave one last look to the remains of her friends and ran the blade through her stomach.

Sakura then woke up in a panic as she kicked her feet up and swung her arms around while screaming. Once she realized it was just a dream, Sakura calmed down and breathed heavily while wiping the sweat from her brow.

"Jesus…" She exhaled. "…Not another one."

Just then, Fujitaka opened the door and walked in, catching his daughter by surprise. "Sakura? Are you okay?"

"Dad." She smiled as she got out of bed. "You're back early."

"Yeah, I know. Weather's been getting kind of weird so I thought I'd come back home before it gets worse."

"Weather? What kind of weather?"

**The Pentagon**

General Curtis Armstrong, a seasoned veteran of the United States Army turned Pentagon official, strolled along the building in a hurry as he entered the Space Command sector, where a team of scientists were already hard at work at their stations. Once inside the observatory, the General's aide approached him with a satellite picture enlarged to show the planet's unusual weather patterns.

"What am I looking at?" The General asked. "A few weather balloons and a cloud big enough to cover Washington?"

"No, sir." The Major shook his head. "Observatories across the country have also picked up the same signal we have. I think what we're looking at is something much bigger than a weather cloud."

"Parts across the globe are experiencing unusual weather patterns." Another scientist said. "Snow in the Middle East, freezing rain in the South Pacific and a huge heat rise in the Antarctic."

"A what?" The General was bewildered.

"Yes, sir. And we expect more and more of these strange patterns to continue. Right now a massive rainstorm is heading for the Asian front."

"And you're saying this is all because of this cloud?" He pointed at the satellite image.

"Well, no sir." The Major shook his head. "Like I said, we don't think it's a cloud per se. For one thing, it's brimming with an immense energy that can't seem to be identified. And it seems to be pulling itself together over one particular region of the planet."

"Any idea where?"

"Not yet, sir. But we're working on it."

"One other thing, sir." The other scientist laid out another set of images on the table. "Satellite surveillance picked up these."

The General looked at the images which appeared to be craters on the outskirts of several civilization colonies. The General picked one of the images up that displayed surveillance over a land of water.

"Where is this one?" He asked.

"That one?" The scientist looked over the paperwork until finding the source. "…Pearl Harbor, sir."

"Pearl Harbor?"

"Yes, sir."

"Get me Washington."

"We're _in_ Washington, sir."

"…I know that." The man covered up his mistake. "I was just… _testing_ you. Now get me the White House."

"Right away, sir." The man walked off.

"Smart ass."

**Hong Kong**

The residents of the Li clan home were in the garden, sending a line of rope down an enormous hole in the ground. As her daughters held the rope, Yelan flashed a light down the hole to help guide their volunteer to the bottom.

"Can you see anything yet?" Yelan asked.

"No!" Meiling called out as she slowly repelled down the hole, wearing a miner's hat complete with flashlight. "I can't see a damn thing!"

"Well hurry up!" Shiefa, one of Li's sisters, responded. "You're too friggin' heavy!"

"Yeah, when did you gain weight!?" Li's oldest sister, Fuutei, joked.

"I did _not_ gain weight!" Meiling gasped as she finally hit the bottom. "Okay, so what am I looking for?"

"Whatever landed in our backyard!"

"Right."

Moving the light around with her head, Meiling could see nothing but the narrow walls of rock and dirt surrounding her. She crouched on the floor and tried to find something unusual until she noticed a strange looking rock wedged between two thick roots.

"Hey, I think I found something!" Meiling called back as she pulled the rock out. "I'm coming up!"

"Oh, great." Li's other sister Fanren rolled her eyes. "Okay, everybody! Back to work! Fat-ass is coming!"

"Hey!"

* * *

Out in the courtyard, Meiling placed the rock on top of a tarp as it draped over one of the stone tables. Everyone huddled together and eyeballed the object before scoffing and turning their attention over to Meiling.

"What the hell is that?" Feimei asked.

"It's the only thing I could find down there!" Meiling defended herself.

"It's a rock!"

"No, not a rock." Fanren ran her hand along the smooth, egg-shaped surface. "It looks like an… egg of some sort. Maybe a space baby!"

"A meteorite." Yelan concluded.

"Huh?" Everyone gave her a strange look.

"This thing crashed into our yard unexpectedly and was powerful enough to make a hole that big. If anything, this _has_ to be a meteorite."

"It's logical." Shiefa nodded. "But somehow I don't think this is a good sign."

"When is it ever!?" Meiling flipped. "Oh, this is just great! Perfect, even! Y'know, I come out here to retire from crime fighting peacefully, maybe start a school of my own and get married to some cute guy I meet on the web! But what happens!? _This_!"

Meiling picked up the egg-shaped meteorite and wobbled it furiously. "This chubby little bastard here! It comes all the way from space and conveniently lands in our backyard! Why us!? Huh!? Why!? I'll tell you why! Because we happen to know a very powerful young woman who's pretty good at getting herself into situations like these! Not on purpose, oh no! I love Sakura, don't get me wrong! But it seems to me that bad luck and guys with a penchant for over-the-top world domination plots love her even more!"

"So…" Yelan tried to calm her down. "…What do you expect we do?"

"Oh, God…" Meiling sighed. "…You guys stay here. I'll go pack my bags."

"No need." The four sisters smiled as they all pulled out a bag of Meiling's belongings.

"You…" Meiling was surprised that they were actually expecting Meiling to snap. "…Right. So, I should… be going now, huh?"

They all nodded. "Have fun."

"…Fun." Meiling picked up the meteorite and grabbed her bags before heading out with Wei to the airport.

**Tomoeda**

Touya and Yukito were the next to drop by the house and surprise Sakura and her friends with a visit. It would be a few days before their transfer to Pearl Harbor so they decided to spend their remaining days in Tomoeda with their loved ones.

"Pearl Harbor?" Fujitaka proudly pat his son on the back. "That's amazing."

"I know." Touya nodded. "I'm actually kind of nervous about it."

"Don't be. I'm sure you'll do fine there."

"So how's Yue?" Sakura turned over to Yuki. "You been letting him out for a breath of fresh air like I told you to?"

"Yes." He nodded.

"Uh-oh." Eriol said as he looked out the window. "Touya, you'd better hide."

"Why?" He asked.

Just then, Nakuru swung the front door open, crushing Spinel against the wall, and hurried into the living room where Touya hid under his chair.

"Touya!" She exclaimed, lifting the chair out of the way. "You really _are_ back!"

"No! No!" Touya screamed as the young woman wrapped her arms around him. "Release me! Now, damn it!"

"Oh, Touya! We're gonna have so much fun together before you leave!"

"I missed this. I really did." Fujitaka grinned.

"Dad, don't encourage her!" Touya strained through Nakuru's grasp. "Yuki! Do something!"

"Uhh…" Yuki looked around and picked up Kero by the tail. "Go get 'em, boy!"

"Hey!" The doll fought back. "Do I look like your hound to you!?"

As the room intensified with endless bickering and a healthy exchange of emotions, Sakura and Fujitaka just shrugged at each other until Tomoyo and her mother walked inside.

"What's going on?" Tomoyo giggled at the sight of Nakuru groping Touya and Yuki dangling Kero like a yo-yo.

"Did we come at a bad time?" Sonomi asked as she held up a black briefcase.

"No, not at all." Fujitaka said as the noise died out. "Is that it?"

"Yes it is."

"What?" Sakura looked around confused. "Is that what? What are you talking about?"

"Well, Sakura…" Sonomi opened the briefcase and exchanged giddy smiles with her daughter. "The boys in marketing came up with this. I'm sure you'll like it."

"Like what?"

Sonomi held up an action figure of Sakura, complete with black battle uniform, cape and sealing wand. Tomoyo then got that starry look in her eyes as she picked up the toy and handed it to Sakura.

"What do you think?" She asked. "I came up with the idea of a whole series!"

"Uhh…" Sakura chuckled nervously. "…It's nice."

"And look!" Tomoyo turned the toy around. "Press the button and it talks!"

"Okay…" Sakura decided to comply.

"_I, Sakura, command you to return to your form of a card!" _The toy exclaimed in a cutesy voice similar to Sakura's.

Sakura couldn't help but laugh. "Hey, that's pretty cool! Let me try another one…"

_"Card of Thunder obey my command!" _

"Nice!"

"_Hoooeeeee!" _

"They've really captured your essence." Eriol smiled.

"I know!" Sakura pressed the button one more time.

"_My Spidey-Sense is tingling!" _The toy said in a masculine voice.

"…The hell?" Sakura gave the toy a strange look.

"Hmm…" Tomoyo took the action figure and shook it. "This one must be defective. I'll send it back and get a better one for you."

"No, that's okay. I like it. Really."

"Okay." Tomoyo handed the toy back. "I just wanted to give it to you before I forget. I've still got to try on my dress for the wedding."

"The wedding!" Eriol suddenly gasped. "I forgot! I was supposed to go meet Li and Takashi to get our measurements! Damn it!"

The blue-eyed boy quickly left the house for about thirty seconds before coming back to kiss Tomoyo goodbye then immediately head back out again. Another few seconds and everyone slowly counted down until Eriol would return to pick up Spinel.

"Wait for it." Nakuru looked at her watch.

"I forgot something!" Eriol said out of breath as he peeled a flattened Spinel from the wall, kissed Tomoyo again and left for good. "We'll meet you tonight at the diner!"

"You got to love him." Tomoyo giggled.

* * *

Somewhere in the city, a young man with silver hair and wearing a long brown trench coat stood on the sidewalk as he looked around the strange environment. He could feel the mysterious powerful force coming towards Earth and tried to shake it off. A small stream of electricity ran through his fingertips but he managed to keep it under control and prevented anyone from noticing. He looked up as people walked by him and noticed a billboard with Sakura's picture on it, thus remembering why he had come. If he was to stop any further destruction, Sakura would be the only one who could help him.

With the clouds still white and the sky still blue, the man knew it would only be a matter of time until they would darken and the force would grow stronger. A few moments later and the man continued walking to wherever Sakura could be.

As he walked, the name of his enemy was the only constant ringing in his mind. "Exitir."


	4. A Crazy Evening

_**A/N: Let's see if you can recognize the movie reference hidden somewhere in this chapter…**_

**CHAPTER FOUR**

Li and Eriol sat around in the fitting rooms, wearing the early dressings of their tuxedos while the tailor worked on Takashi from behind the curtain. After a long silence, Takashi came running out screaming with his dress shirt folded in his arms.

"Li! Eriol!" He shouted. "This guy's a perv!"

"Huh?" Li stood up from his seat.

"What are you talking about?" Eriol asked.

"That old guy!" Takashi pointed at the tailor who came walking towards them with the measuring tape over his shoulder. "He felt me up!"

"What?" Li couldn't believe what he was hearing. "You can never stop your bullshitting, can you!?"

"I'm serious! He ran his so-called 'measuring tape' up against my leg and cupped my--"

"No, he didn't! He was just getting the measurements of your inner seam!"

"Really?"

"Really!" Eriol and Li nodded.

"No, he's right." The old man said. "I _did_ try to feel him up."

"What!?"

"Just kidding. Can we continue, please? I _do _have other clients."

"Yeah, I bet you feel _them _up too!" Takashi accused.

"Watch it." The old man slapped the boy across the head. "Tailoring is an art. My life! My passion!"

"Okay, okay! Just don't kick my ass! I have a woman to look good for!"

While Takashi went back with the tailor to fix his suit, Li looked at himself in the mirror and straightened out his collar. Eriol, meanwhile, sat on the chair and straightened the green ribbon around Spinel's neck.

"Ow!" The cat griped. "Watch it!"

"Sorry." Eriol said as he tied a ribbon on the green strap.

"Tell me again why I have to wear this thing?"

"Because you and Kero are the ring bearers. Kero's got Sakura's ring to give to Li while--"

"While I have Li's ring to give to Sakura." He interrupted. "Yeah, I remember now. I guess that explains the color-coded ribbons around our necks."

"If it makes you feel any better, Suppi…" Li said as he continued looking in the mirror. "It's as degrading to Kero as it is to you."

"Ooh. Yeah, that _does_ make me feel better! All right, master Eriol! Sock it to me!"

With a chuckle, Eriol continued tying the ribbon as he spoke to Li. "Well? How does it feel to be getting married?"

"Ask me again when the deed is done." The brown-eyed boy grinned.

"I can tell you're excited."

"Like you wouldn't believe. After the wedding, we're gonna--" Li immediately caught himself and stopped.

"You're gonna what?"

"Nothing." He then changed the subject. "So… any wedding bells in store for you and Tomoyo anytime soon?"

"Well… I wouldn't say anytime soon, perhaps."

"Wimp."

"Li!!!" Takashi called out again.

"Your turn." Li signaled Eriol to assist the whining Takashi.

**Cairo**

A gathering of black storm clouds moved in over the usual sunny strip of the Egyptian deserts, which in recent hours had become entrenched with snow. As the people huddled together to look up at the massive nimbostratus formations, a distant rumble growled within the belly of the beast. Soon after, several streams of fire blasted from the clouds and landed on the ground, destroying anything that stood in its path. As the people scattered, the unidentified objects continued to rain down and at an escalated speed, giving people little chance to flee. Those who came into contact with the falling debris immediately wound up as a crater in the ground.

**Antarctica**

A series of whirlpools began to form in the middle of the icy rivers of the Antarctic as the mountains of ice and rock trembled from the force. An avalanche of snow soon followed as one of the mountains sunk to the bottom of the cyclonic ocean, splitting in half and causing an explosion of even more icy debris. Above the unnatural wreck, the clouds began to separate as a beam of highly concentrated sunlight began to pierce through the icy floors of the region.

**Washington - The Pentagon**

The Space Command's best and brightest scrambled around the observatory while General Armstrong and Major Edison spoke with the President via satellite uplink.

"As you can see, Mr. President…" The Major held up a set of satellite images. "…The anomaly indicated at reference point 19:36.15 shows a severe increase in cumulus formation over the eastern part of the globe. At this rate, the anomaly will spread from the center, reaching the Asian continent and ours in a matter of days. The anomaly will then--"

"Enough of this anomaly, Major Edison." The President interrupted. "What are we _really_ dealing with here?"

The Major sighed heavily. "Unusual weather patterns, a major power surge emanating from the cloud and scattered showers of what appear to be balls of fire."

"Yes but what does it _mean_, Major!?"

"Mr. President, if I may…" General Armstrong butt in. "With all of the reports we've been getting from around the globe and the recent incidents that have been occurring, I think it's only logical to assume that what we're dealing with is beyond our realm of thinking. I don't even think it's from our realm, _period_."

"General Armstrong, are you suggesting that what we're experiencing is something from another world? That a bunch of… _aliens_ are responsible for all this?"

"It's possible, sir. After all, there's a girl in Japan we all know who can summon magic to destroy demons from Hell. I think this deserves the benefit of the doubt."

**Tomoeda**

The man in the trench coat crossed the street as he kept his eyes open for Card Captor Sakura. Time was running out and he had to meet with the girl before the one known as Exitir arrived. As he stopped by a local diner, he took out a small device from his pocket and looked at the blinking green light that laid next to the infrared monitor.

"She's here." He said to himself. "The girl is here. But… where exactly?"

* * *

Inside the diner, Sakura struggled with the menu as the others were just about to order. The waitress came up to the table and Fujitaka turned to his daughter, insisting she order first.

"Sakura?" He started. "Are you ready?"

"Uhh…" Sakura squinted her eyes. "Yeah."

There was a long pause as Sakura struggled to read the menu item that was laid out before her while the soft music playing in the back built a sort of tension. As everyone waited patiently, Sakura just sighed and tossed the menu back and smiled at her father.

"I'll have what you're having." She said.

"But you hate the salmon mousse." Her father reminded her. "Wait a minute. Sakura, why aren't you wearing your--"

"I gotta go to the bathroom!" Sakura interrupted as she rushed off.

"What?"

"Is she okay?" Sonomi asked.

"I don't know." Fujitaka turned his head over to Tomoyo. "Do you mind checking up on her?"

"Of course not." Tomoyo said as she went after her friend.

Just then, Takashi, Eriol and Li entered the diner and sat with their friends as they witnessed Tomoyo hurrying after a panic-stricken Sakura.

"What's going on?" Li asked, almost ready to follow them.

"I don't know." Fujitaka shook his head.

"Same old Sakura." Touya giggled. "I wonder what it could be this time."

"Maybe I should go check on her." Li suggested.

"In the girl's bathroom?" Yuki stopped the boy from leaving. "Come on, I'm sure it's nothing serious."

"Yeah, you're probably right."

"Here, I'll go if you want me to." Chiharu left the table as well.

"Hey, why is it every time girls go to the bathroom, they have to go in packs?" Takashi asked aloud.

Naoko, Rika, Nakuru and Sonomi merely exchanged glances and turned away, thus shooting down Takashi's question with no possibility of an answer.

"Women." The boy rolled his eyes.

The music playing in the background then switched over to something that was dreary and depressing but the voice that began singing sounded even more depressing.

"_I'm lying alone with my head on the phone… Thinking of you till it hurts…_" The voice tediously sang.

"When did they put in a karaoke machine in here?" Li asked.

"I don't know." Eriol shrugged.

"_I wish I could carry your smile and my heart… For times when my life feels so low…_" The voice continued singing.

"You know, that voice sounds _really _familiar." Naoko said.

"Yeah." Rika nodded. "I wonder…"

Slowly, Rika, Naoko, Takashi and Li turned their heads around and were shocked to find their old teacher standing next to the machine and singing his heart out.

"Mr. Terada!?" They gasped.

"_I'm all out of love… I'm so lost without you… I know you were right… Believing for so long…_" Terada slurred through the lyrics as the people sitting near the miniature stage chuckled.

"That's so scary." Naoko grinned.

"Hey…" Takashi got a fiendish grin on his face. "Let's go poke him with a stick till he barfs."

"…M'kay." Rika said, taking out a slender rod from the inside of her coat. "Hey, you guys let us know when the food gets here!"

* * *

Inside the bathroom, Sakura leaned over the sink as the images from her dream continued flashing in her mind. She turned the faucet and immediately dabbled her face with cold water in an attempt to drown out the images from her head. Tomoyo handed her a towel and could only watch in confusion as Sakura breathed heavily and looked in the mirror.

"Sakura?" Tomoyo put a hand on the girl's shoulder. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine…" She gave her friends half a smile.

"Are you sure?" Chiharu asked. "You're kind of scaring us here."

"I just… I've been having these dreams lately."

"Dreams?"

"Dreams of me… doing stuff I regret."

"What kind of stuff?"

"Sakura…" Tomoyo knew instantly she was referring to her past as the Shadow Reaper. "Do you mean--"

"Yes, Tomoyo." Sakura nodded. "Flashbacks."

"Flashbacks?" Chiharu started to think. "Does this have anything to do with… y'know. Your death?"

Sakura simply shrugged. "Yeah, I guess you can say that."

"Oh."

"Now come on. I don't know about you but I'm getting hungry. Let's go back."

As Sakura opened the door, she noticed several photographers lurking behind the windows of the restaurant, just waiting to pounce on Sakura. With a gasp, Sakura calmly went back inside and shut the door.

"Shit." Sakura said.

"What is it?" Tomoyo asked.

"Razis."

"No."

"Yup."

"Shit."

"How did they know you were gonna be here?" Chiharu clutched her hands together.

"Hell if I know." Sakura said as she took out a card. "But I'll be damned if they're gonna ruin an evening out with my friends and family. That's _my_ job!"

With a flick of her wrist, Sakura summoned the spirit of the Bubble card as it floated above the bathroom and awaited its master's instructions.

"The Bubble card?" Tomoyo raised an eyebrow.

"Trust me." Sakura winked.

* * *

As the photographers barged through the entrance of the diner in a hurry, everyone at Sakura's table moaned and put their heads down.

"Oh great…" Touya sighed. "This is just what we need."

"Where is she? Where's Sakura?" One of the photographers looked around the restaurant.

"Hey, look!" Pointed another. "Some of the Tokyo Knights!"

"Don't call us that!" Li griped as a series of lights flashed on the group. "Damn it!"

Just then, Chiharu screamed in horror as she hurried out of the bathroom with her arms flailing about. She ran up to the paparazzi and pulled on her hair like a crazy person normally would.

"Aaahhh!" Chiharu screamed. "Run for your life! Aaaahhh!" She then ran off again.

"Oh my God! It's horrible!" Tomoyo exclaimed as she collapsed out of the bathroom door.

Everyone then panicked as they saw Sakura wobble out of the bathroom with an oversized ball of white foam completely shrouded around her head.

"Sakura!" Li gasped.

"It's her puffball bacteria!" Tomoyo screamed some more. "Run away! It isn't safe! Don't let her touch you! Oh God!"

Sakura purposely knocked into some of the patrons' tables while waving her arms around, scaring not only the restaurant's staff and customers but the photographers as well.

"What the hell is that!?" One of the cameramen asked.

"Damn it, man!" Li grabbed him by the shirt, playing along with the gag. "It's her puffball bacteria! She touches you and you're dead!"

Just then, Sakura waddled to the middle of the building and tilted her head back, bursting out a mixture of soap and shaving cream from her mouth. This, of course, led everyone to haul ass out of the restaurant while Tomoyo continued screaming like an idiot.

"Run! Run for your lives!" Tomoyo then grabbed a sandwich from another person's plate and stuffed it in her mouth before screaming some more. "Save-- Save yourselves! Holy shit!"

As the music from the karaoke machine stopped playing, Terada noticed the building was now empty and looked around in a daze.

"Jesus…" He said to himself. "I don't think my singing's _that_ bad…"

* * *

_**A/N: Things are just getting crazier, folks. And up next, we'll finally get a chance to see what exactly is approaching Earth. And that whole Blood Ring, Descendant, Kanaye thing will be sorted out too. I promise. **_


	5. Vision

**CHAPTER FIVE**

Hiroshi Kanaye tilted his head back as he downed the glass of whiskey he held firmly in his hand while standing over his mini bar. Furious over his failed attempt to kill Sakura, the ex-businessman slammed his glass to the floor, shattering it instantly. With a sigh, he headed over to a small coffee table in his living room and looked down on the various old newspapers that had been published during his six year stint in prison. Most of the headlines and side panels involved the latest antics of Card Captor Sakura and her team of Tokyo Knights.

"Sakura…" The man growled as he continued eying the articles, some of which read:

**SAKURA KINOMOTO RETURNS FROM THE DEAD**

**HIROSHI KANAYE INDICTED FOR MURDER CONSPIRACY & FRAUD**

**LORCA TO KANAYE: "YOU SET ME UP!" **

**CRIME RATE PLUMMETS**

**TOKYO KNIGHTS RETIRE**

**CLASSROOM COMBUSTS; TEACHER HAS BREAKDOWN**

The last headline provided a bit of a chuckle from Kanaye as he shook his head in amusement. "Ha ha… _Terada_."

Another heavy sigh and the man leaned against his high-story window and looked down on the city streets below his condo. Alone with his thoughts, Kanaye could feel his anger flowing through him.

_**Kanaye POV: **_

_That stupid girl. She ruined me. I hope she's happy now. Because when I get through with her, she'll be begging to die for good. And I'll be more than willing to oblige. She hasn't seen the last of me. Oh, no. Far from it. And Lorca? I'll get rid of him before he even concocts a half-assed scheme to regenerate the Power Gems. _

* * *

That same night, at a closed-off field near a service road, the Blood Ring priests materialized from a flash of light and fog. The headman of the small group, removed his hood to reveal a man in his mid-thirties with black hair, gray eyes and a scar running down the left side of his face. He sniffed the air around him and sensed the aura left behind from his old master.

"This is the place." He said in a raspy voice. "This is where Lord Faust was imprisoned those many years ago."

"But the stone casing." One of the priests pointed out. "Where has it gone? We need a piece of it in order to complete the spell."

"Yes." Nodded another. "Without it, we have no chance of reviving our master."

At that point, all the priests began to concur with each other, much to their leader's annoyance, which eventually led him to raise his voice to silence them all.

"Silence!" He waved his hand. "The stone casing is not important. Had you read the instructions more carefully, you'd have realized that the spell calls for a 'sample of the earth from which he was wronged'. A simple mound of dirt or rock will suffice."

"And where to next?" Asked yet another priest.

"Tomoeda Correctional Facility."

* * *

The halls of the cold and murky prison building were filled with endless jeering and nonsensical gibberish as the guards made their nightly rounds. The cells, overfilled with countless inmates, were barred tightly and sealed shut as the guards used their batons to beat back the wandering hands and arms of the more unyielding prisoners.

All but one man, who sat on the floor with his back to the bars and face tilted down as the moonlight shined down on him. With his eyes closed and focus directed only to the contents of his mind, Christopher Lorca was able to drown out the noise and wait for the madness to end. For the six years he spent in prison, awaiting the next three for his first parole hearing, every night was the same. A madhouse of corrupt individuals he believed didn't deserve to share the same block with him.

Moments later, the man found himself lying in his bunk with his eyes still directed at the little bit of moonlight that remained.

"One day." He whispered to himself. "…And this injustice will be undone."

The man nestled into his bed but was unable to fall asleep. After minutes of endless tossing and turning, Lorca moved from his bunk and walked over to the bars on the wall. Taking off his shirt, the shiny beams from the moon spread all across the man's back and illuminated his self-drawn tattoos. The bizarre, almost arachnid, design spread from his back and onto his arms and was made with the blackest ink available. Lorca spread his arms outward and absorbed the moonlight, breathing heavily and muttering under his breath.

Suddenly, an image of red fire and a hissing breath flashed within the man's mind and caused him to drop to the floor in a scare. Lorca then closed his eyes to shun the telepathic link the Blood Ring leader was making with him and curled in a fetal position. His body now shivering from the intensity of the mental invasion, Lorca's mental images were becoming more fierce and accurate until he eventually learned of the dark priests' plan. Once the images stopped, Lorca regained his balance and crawled into bed with the knowledge that his salvation was now at hand.

* * *

The next day saw happy faces on everyone, probably because of Sakura's latest successful attempt to foil the evil, bloodsucking paparazzi. As the extended family all hung around the Kinomoto household, a familiar face came to visit them with some strange news.

"They're selling like crazy at Twin Bells." Kaho said as she dropped a Sakura plushy on the girl's lap. "Although, I don't know why they came with glasses."

"Oh, yeah…" Sakura nervously chuckled. "…Glasses, huh? I… I don't know why they'd do that…"

"Yeah." Tomoyo took the doll. "Sakura doesn't wear glasses… do you?"

"No, of course not!" She jumped up in a panic. "I, uhh… Li! Do you want to help me in the kitchen?"

"Huh?" He looked up at her while holding the strange doll.

"Just come on!"

As Sakura pulled Li away and dragged him into the kitchen, an almost envious Sonomi swiped the doll from midair and eyeballed it furiously.

"How the hell does she do it!?" She griped. "Maki slaps on a pair of fake glasses that the real Sakura _obviously_ doesn't wear and now she's making a killing on them!"

"What?" Fujitaka scratched his head. "But Sakura really does--"

The man was interrupted as the loud clattering of various dishes emanated from inside the kitchen. Afterwards, Kero and Suppi flew out with suspicious grins on their faces and waved at the pondering group.

"Hiya." The yellow doll said. "We were just…"

"…Looking for some cookies!" Spinel answered. "Sakura's on it, though."

"Okay, I've got the tea!" Sakura said as she brought out the tray in an edgy manner. "Li's got the cookies, so everybody just dig in and if you want more, let me know!"

She then noticed the plush in Sonomi's hands and immediately took it away. "Oh, what's this still doing here? I think I'll just put it away for now, okay!? Good! Everybody settled? Okay! Tea! Check! Cookies! Check! Doll!" She then tossed the doll back with the fake pair of glasses in her pocket. "Check! Enjoy!"

As Sakura hurried upstairs with the doll in her hand, everyone paused to reflect on what the hell had just happened. Yukito of course, being the fat-ass pig he is, immediately took to stuffing his surprisingly un-pudgy face with cookies and tea without giving Sakura's strange behavior a second thought.

"…Yeah, I'd say Sakura hasn't changed a bit." Touya nodded. "But that's just me."

"So how are things at the school?" Fujitaka changed the subject. "Does anyone miss your old students?"

"Well…" Kaho gave Li, Tomoyo and Eriol a grin. "Mr. Terada often speaks about you. Although, not in the way you'd expect."

"Do you mean he drops the 'F' bomb every time our names our mentioned, then takes a swig from his flask?" Tomoyo asks.

"Then pulls his hair to curse at us some more?" Eriol added.

"Before finally making some more obscene gestures with his hands then wails out an indecipherable phrase in the middle of conversation?" Li rounded off.

Kaho simply nodded. "Yes."

"No, that's pretty much what we'd expect."

"Oh."

"Wait, what's Terada doing back at school?"

"Yeah." Nakuru joined in. "I thought he left after he broke down because of that fire Sakura started."

"It was an accident!" Sakura's barely audible voice called from upstairs.

"Man, the Razis had a field day with that one!" Kero reminisced.

* * *

Later that day at Twin Bells, Maki Matsumoto locked the doors of her shop as the business day came to a close. As she turned around to empty the register, she was startled by the sudden appearance of an obviously pissed-off Sakura who was holding up Sonomi's doll, which had been ripped apart, scribbled with marker and set ablaze--courtesy of the Fire card.

"Sakura!" The woman shrieked. "Christ, you scared me! How did you get in here? Oh, look who I'm talking to. What can I help you with? Did you need--"

"Why, Maki?" Sakura growled. "And how did you find out?"

"Find out what?"

"That… I wear… y'know…"

"The photo was in one of the papers."

"Huh?"

"Yeah. Hold on a minute."

Maki went to the backroom of her store and turned the light on, where she then rummaged through a collection of old newspapers and magazine articles. After finding the right one, she returned to Sakura and showed her the picture. The green-eyed girl then gasped as she looked at a recent picture of her in the park, wearing a pair of glasses.

"Maki!" Sakura whined. "Do you know what will happen if they see this!?"

"Uhh…" She thought for a moment. "…They'll read it?"

"No! It's just more Razi fodder!"

"Oh, is that why they barged in on you a few days ago?"

Sakura nodded. "Yes. I mean how degrading is it when you get chased by the media all over town and the only place to hide is your school!? Ugh. And they _still _managed to find us!"

"Wait a minute, are you telling me nobody knows?"

"Well…"

"Not even your friends? Not even your boyfriend?"

" My _fiancé_. And no, not him either. My dad is the only one who knows. But I keep forgetting to tell him to not tell _them_, so they don't tell the Razis, who'll tell the press, who'll then tell the entire city, who'll then tell the world and then tell--"

"Okay, I got the picture." Maki massaged her head. "I'm sorry. I didn't know. I mean, when you signed the contract to let me use your image, I didn't think adding glasses were going to have such an impact."

"It's okay."

"So what now?"

"I guess now… there's no point in avoiding the inevitable. I mean, they were all going to find out anyways, right? Might as well be now."

"It's really not that big a deal, you know."

* * *

The Kinomoto household was now in a fit of laughter as Sakura stood in the living room with her glasses over a very annoyed look on her face.

"Oh, I get it!" Touya continued bursting with laughter. "No wonder you kept failing your driver's test!"

"I thought they knew." Fujitaka scratched his head.

"Well at least we can stop covering for her." Spinel said.

"Yeah." Kero nodded. "I didn't see the whole point of us having to play along with it in the first place."

"I told you already!" Sakura snapped. "The Razis feed off this stuff!"

"Can we see them?" Tomoyo asked after recovering from a near fatal case of the giggles.

"Well…" Sakura shyly backed away. "…I don't know."

"Oh come on!" Touya pleaded. "It can't possibly make you look any worse than you do now!"

"Hey!"

"What?"

"Oh, please!" Nakuru pleaded next. "I bet you look cute with them on!"

"Well…" Sakura sighed and reached into pant pocket, pulling out a small black case.

Upon opening it, she removed a pair of thin, black-framed glasses with silver arms and pink ear hooks. With a somewhat depressed sigh, Sakura slipped the glasses on and faced her friends for the first time with her new prescription lenses.

"Okay." She said. "What do you think?"

"I was right!" Nakuru became all starry-eyed.

"Sakura!" Tomoyo giddy all of a sudden. "You look so _kawaii_!"

"Really?" Sakura started to blush.

An amused Li got up from his seat and wrapped his arms around Sakura, kissing her on the forehead.

"Really." He answered her question. "You _do_ look cute."

"Do _I_ look cute?" Eriol asked, expecting a compliment.

"You?" Li was already on the prowl for insult. "You look like a pit-bull with down syndrome ."

As the bickering commenced between Eriol and Li, Sakura could now sigh a breath of relief. She no longer had to hide her new look but those around her couldn't help but wonder why she felt she had to hide it in the first place, besides from luring away the prying eyes of the soulless paparazzi.

* * *

In the heart of the city, James Elliot Graham, Pops, Maya, Suki and Marvin wandered around in search of their old battalion leader. Pops had suggested transporting directly to her home but Maya and Suki both thought it would have been an invasion of privacy… not to mention she could have been in the crapper at the time.

"Fret not." Graham said as he led the small group into the subway train. "I know where she lives. We'll be there before nightfall. I only hope we can inform her of the situation before the Blood Ring manages to bust Lorca loose."

"We must hurry." Pops added. "I can feel it coming closer. There isn't much time left."

"Dear God." Maya sighed. " If we don't prevent this from happening, it's possible we might be bighting off more than we can chew."

"Yeah." Marvin nodded. "…You're talking about sex, right?"

"No."

"Oh."


	6. Jailbreak

**CHAPTER SIX**

Upon exiting the train, Meiling hurried out of the subway and up to the surface where she immediately got hold of a taxi. She moved her way into the vehicle's backseat, careful not to damage the large egg-shaped rock she had kept hidden in her backpack.

"Tomoeda! Fast!" Meiling said in a panic.

"Hey, I know you!" The driver's face lit up. "You're one of them, aren't ya!? A Tokyo Knight!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever! Drive!"

"Hey, what was it like battling those Demon things on Alcatraz? I always wondered."

"It sucked. Drive. Please!"

"You guys got anything big coming up?"

"What? No! We're retired!"

"Awfully young, I'd say."

"Retired from _crime fighting_, you putz! Now drive, damn it! Drive!"

"You got it, babe!" The man winked as he drove off.

"Thank you." She sighed. "At last I can--wait a minute... _Babe_?"

**The Pentagon**

"General Armstrong!" Major Edison ran up to his superior with a handful of documents. "We've got trouble, sir!"

"Trouble?" The 58 year old asked. "What are you talking about?"

"There's a giant meteor fragment heading towards Italy, sir. The damage could be immense."

"Casualties?"

"…Countless millions slaughtered." The man hesitated.

"How long?"

**Italy**

Somewhere in a small village, the oncoming entity released yet another attack. Without warning, a light in the sky expanded across the stars and unleashed a massive booming sound followed by a descending orb of pure fire and rock. As it hit the ground, a wall of dust and ash enshrouded the small village and destroyed everything in its path. Innocents in the open were the first to be incinerated, while others who took refuge in their homes eventually caught the shockwaves from the blast and became remnants of dust themselves.

Seconds later, more and more meteor fragments began to fall like rain. The damage that had been done was only getting worse and the entity in the stars was getting even closer to the planet Earth. From within the dark cloud, a hidden signal began to emit that very little of the planet's most advanced equipment could pick up.

**Tomoeda**

The ringing from Eriol's doorbell prompted the blue-eyed boy to answer in haste. Who he saw standing outside his door, completely caught him by surprise.

"Mr. Graham!" He eagerly shook the man's hand. "How good to see you."

"Likewise, Mr. Hiiragizawa." The old man nodded. "But I'm afraid this isn't a social visit."

"What's going on?"

"I'll explain everything. But first we must meet with Sakura and the others."

* * *

"There's no way." Sakura shook her head in doubt. "Faust is dead. I killed him."

"You did." Graham nodded. "But I'm afraid his Blood Ring priests have found a way to resurrect him _and_ the Demon Knights."

"But how?" Eriol asked.

"The Sangria Gauntlet."

"But the Power Gems were destroyed." Li reminded him. "Sakura disintegrated them before she…"

"Before I died." Sakura finished the sentence with a sigh. "But even if they were trying to retrieve the power over the Demon Knights, they would need the Sangria Gauntlet."

"Yes." Graham said, removing his hat. "I know. Which is why we must keep it hidden."

"I already have." Eriol said. "But do they know it's here."

"I wouldn't be surprised. We must keep it hidden safe where no one can get to it."

"What do you suggest?"

"Give it to me. I have the army waiting on another side of town."

"The army?" Sakura's face lit up. "Really?"

"Really." Graham nodded with a grin. "If I can get a small team to guard it while we patrol towards the prison and get to Lorca before they do, we just might have a chance."

"Okay!" Eriol ran down the halls of his home with Sakura, Li, Tomoyo and Graham close behind.

Inside the library, Eriol approached one of the bookshelves and ran his finger along the various spines of the books. After finding the right one, Eriol pulled the book out, opened it and pressed the small red button that lied buried deep within the hollow center. In no time at all, the shelf slid to the left and revealed a hidden room where a glass case stood in the center with a mystical blue and purple aura surrounding it.

"Amazing." The old man said. "You have it spellbound."

Eriol gave him a smug look. "Hell, it beats the average lock and key any day. Besides… I only did it so Li couldn't grab it to smack me around again."

"And I'd do it again, too!" Li calmly said with a mischievous grin on his face.

Rolling his eyes back, Eriol held his hand out and absorbed the mystical aura, which allowed the glass case to clearly display the Sangria Gauntlet. It's silver texture and shine were now burnt out and replaced with black smudges of ash and splotches of dry blood.

"How would they know to bring back the Demon Knights without using the Power Gems?" Eriol asked.

"When the gems were destroyed, they left a residual aura that could be jumpstarted to regenerate the Power Gems to their full capacity." Graham explained. "Only Faust has the power to do that."

"We're not going to let him." Eriol reached into the case and pulled out the weightless metallic glove. "Here."

Slowly, Mr. Graham took the Gauntlet from Eriol's hands and carefully placed it into his bag. "Thank you, my friends."

"Now what?" Sakura was eager to know. "Do we head for the prison?"

"I'm afraid my not, my dear."

"Why not?"

"If you did, you would only get in the way and interfere with my plans to resurrect our great Lord Faust."

"What!?" Everyone's jaw dropped.

"And being the heroes you are…" Graham's face suddenly morphed into that of the Blood Ring leader. "…I can't let you do that."

"Oh, son of a…" Sakura started as she reached for a card.

"_Palpito!_" The evil priest said as he unleashed a massive shockwave that sent the four back. "See you later, suckers!"

With the leader of the Ring heading off, Sakura and the others slowly got back on their feet as Kero and Spinel arrived a bit too late.

"Hey, what happened!?" Kero yelled, noticing the hidden room his friends were standing in. "Whoa, hang on! Is that where you were keeping all the good stuff!? Oh, hell no! I want in on some of that! What do ya got in there!? Happy Tarts!? Fudge Muffins!? Goo-goo Berries!? No fair, damn it!"

"Not now, Kero!" Sakura griped as she dusted herself off. "We've got to go after him now!"

Just then, the real James Elliot Graham entered the library with Pops, Maya, Suki and Marvin close behind. With a tip of his hat, Graham greeted his old friends and immediately knew what had happened.

"He tricked you." The real Graham asked. "…Didn't he?"

Sakura and Li turned to Eriol and punched him in the arm and responded in unison. "Yes."

"Well?" Tomoyo started. "Should we go now or wait for more accidents to happen?"

Sakura shuffled her cards around and gave her friends a smile. "Well… so much for retirement, huh?"

* * *

Along the corridors of the prison, six members of the Blood Ring, including its maniacal leader, strolled nonchalantly yet hastily towards their destination. Approaching one of the checkpoints, one of the guards stuck his baton out to catch their attention.

"Hey." He said in a firm voice. "Where do you guys think you're going?"

"We're here to see an old friend." The leader grinned.

"Inmates can only be visited by means of appointment in the designated room and _not_ the cell blocks themselves. Do you have an appointment?"

"I didn't think we needed one."

"For _this_ section you do."

"I grow weary of all this stalling." The leader snapped his fingers. "Dispose of him."

With that command, the other five red-cloaked priests grabbed the man and tossed him through the windows of a nearby office. At that moment, some of the guards on duty ran towards the dark magicians and held out their weapons."

"What the hell are you doing!?" One of the guards said before getting his head blown off by a dark spell.

"Good." The leader hissed. "There'll be others coming. Have fun."

With the prison now under lockdown and the sirens blaring, more and more of the guards showed up with a SWAT team to bring down the Blood Ring. This, of course, led to the inmates whooping and hollering as if to throw off the authorities' focus. As the head priest strolled along the specified cell block, he could feel the evil emanating from all of the inmates and tilted his head back with a smile. Upon reaching Lorca's cell, the priest magically slid the gate open and extended his hand to the man.

"Christopher Lorca." He said calmly. "Your deliverance is at hand."

"Who are you?" The Spaniard asked, taking the man's hand in friendship. "Why have you come to set me free?"

"Because our work isn't done yet, Mr. Lorca. There is so much more you and I can accomplish but to do that, we must first bring back the only man who can help us achieve such goals."

"Okay." Lorca nodded, stepping out of his cell.

"Come. We must hurry. _She _will be here."

"You mean…"

"Sakura."

The head priest approached the small battle taking place between the Blood Ring and the SWAT team and raised his arm. Unleashing a stream of magic energy, the gates on all the cells began to explode. Once the dust settled, the inmates were now free to roam about the prison and lay waste upon the guards who have watched over them.

"Be free, my friends!" The leader shouted. "For now we must part ways and bring an end to all of humanity. Blood Ring! Head out!"

In a swirling vortex of black smoke, Christopher Lorca and the Blood Ring vanished before the SWAT team's eyes. But not before they inflicted the most critical blow to the prison yet. With a spark of magic, the prison walls began to crumble and allow the crazed inmates access to the city streets of Tomoeda.

"Oh, shit!" One of the authorities shouted. "They're heading for the city!"

"Oh no." Tomoyo said as she and the others arrived outside the falling prison. "We're too late."

"It gets worse." Li pointed out to the thousands of inmates who were now looting the city streets for weapons as more and more police arrived.

"Okay." Sakura sighed. "If we can prevent them from heading towards _our_ neighborhood or any one like it, we should be fine."

An explosion from the prison caused everyone to shield themselves from the shooting debris as the people on the streets began to flee in a panic.

An exasperated Sakura sighed. "Just when I thought that I was out they pull me back in!"


	7. Trouble In Tokyo

**CHAPTER SEVEN**

All throughout the city, buildings burned while streets overcrowded with people fleeing from the prison escapees. Rioters began to demolish everything in sight while the demonic priests of the Blood Ring distracted the swarms of police and SWAT teams with a massive cloak of dark fog. To make matters worse, the leader of the priests used his dark magic to tremble the ground and cause enormous shifts in order to occupy Sakura and her friends.

"Ichigo!" A dark haired boy called out. "Ichigo, let's go!"

"Wait…" A young, red-haired girl said softly as she stood by a street lamp and watched the city fall around her.

"Ichigo!" The boy grabbed his girlfriend by the hand. "Come on. We can't stay here. It isn't safe."

"No." She looked him in the eye. "I have to do something."

"You know you can't."

"They need us."

"They've got Sakura."

"I know but…" She paused for a moment and looked around, as if something was calling her name. "I've got the strangest feeling this isn't the worst of it."

"What are you talking about?"

"I can't explain it. Maybe if we round up the others and see if they're--"

"Ichigo, listen to me." He gently placed his hands on her shoulders. "I know you want to help. But it's over. Your time has ended. It's Sakura's turn now."

"There's got to be a way."

"How?"

"I… I don't know how exactly. But I think I know someone who does."

"Come on, Ichigo." The boy started again. "Let's get out of here."

With a nod, young Ichigo Momomiya and her boyfriend fled the scene before more destruction could head their way.

* * *

"His name his Aram Fingle!" Graham explained as he and the other magicians followed Sakura and her friends through the crowded city streets. "He's been searching the globe for various artifacts that can reawaken the soul of the Dark Lord." 

"Hell of a time, if you ask me!" Sakura groaned as she punched out an oncoming escapee.

"Why didn't you contact us before?" Eriol demanded to know.

"I'm sorry." Graham sighed. "I underestimated his abilities. I thought by now he would have given up his search."

"I don't get it!" Marvin stammered as he stuck close to his wife. "What's with the prison blowing up?"

"Somehow I think he set this all up as a distraction. To keep us away from interrupting his plans."

"It's working!" Li said as he and Eriol tossed back another group of men in jumpsuits.

"They'll be setting up roadblocks next." Tomoyo started to worry. "There's no way we can cover the entire city."

"Of course we can." An optimistic Maya said as she formed a circle with her famed transport powder. "Where to, Sakura?"

"My place. We've got to get Touya and Yukito to ready the WarHawk." Sakura said as she leveled the ground they stood on. "I just hope they finished the upgrades on time."

* * *

Elsewhere in the city, Kaho Mizuki stepped out of her car and watched as hundreds of people were escorted by fleets of police cars. She looked around and noticed the thick mystical fog heading her way and slowly put her arm forward. 

"What the hell is this?" She asked herself as the dark fog swirled past her.

In that moment of confusion, her mind was then invaded by a mysterious telepathic link. Struggling with the massive intensity of her intruder's mind, she began to speak with him with her thoughts.

"_**Kaho Mizuki?" **_

"_Who are you? How are you doing this?"_

"_**Forgive me. I mean you no harm. I was unable to contact the one called Sakura Kinomoto, so I decided to contact someone close to her."  
**_

"_What do you want with Sakura?"_

"_**I am in need of her assistance. A powerful entity is heading towards your planet and she is the only one who can help save it."**_

"_Entity?"_

"_**A warlord."**_

"_Who are you?" _

"_**My name is Aries. I must speak with the keeper of the Cards."**_

"_I don't know where she is. She could be anywhere."_

"_**Her movements are erratic. They make contact with her seem almost impossible. I need you to bring her to me."**_

"_Where are you?"  
_

"_**Another side of town."**_

"_How am I suppose to find you?"_

After a lengthy pause, Kaho realized the telepathic link had been broken. She breathed heavily and noticed several of the inmates coming her way, loaded with weapons and ammunition. Before she could act, a shootout soon began between the police and the escapees while Kaho leaned against the side of her vehicle.

"Get out of here! Now!" A cop said as he grabbed the woman by the arm.

"What's going on!?" She demanded to know.

Another ground explosion sent the cops flying back as Kaho remained in place. She then noticed a small group of jumpsuits creeping towards her with creepy looks on their faces and sighed.

"Honestly, don't you men ever think of anything else?" She sighed as she raised her arm again. With a blink of an eye, she grabbed the men by the crotch via telekinesis and hurled them into another group of escapees.

"I've got to find Sakura."

* * *

"Stay the hell away from me!" Terada ran down the crowded sidewalks with his former students in hot pursuit. 

"But Mr. Terada!" Naoko pleaded. "If we travel in groups, we'll be safer!"

"Leave me alone!"

"Do you want something to happen to you!?" Takashi hollered as he continued running.

"Sometimes I _feel_ like dying! So let me die in peace!"

"That's crazy talk!" Rika wailed as she finally tackled the man to the floor. "I got him!"

"Tie him up and take him back!" Chiharu said as she and the others pulled out a roll of duct tape.

"You little bastards!" Terada screamed at the top of his lungs. "Why can't I get rid of you!?"

* * *

In the heart of Tokyo, a gathering was now taking place. Hordes of police and SWAT teams were about to face off with the thousands of escaped criminals as the mystical fog grew even thicker. 

"Don't let any of them get away!" The police chief said as he and his squad set up a road block. "Use excessive force and shoot to kill if absolutely necessary! We can't let them go any further!"

"No promises, sir." The SWAT captain readied his weapon.

"Damn it. Where the hell is our backup!?"

Then, in a moment that's surely been ripped off from several movies in an attempt to bring something humorous to the screen and make the audience go, "Oh, hey! I get it!", the thundering engines of the silver-chromed WarHawk caught everyone's attention as the plane itself landed in the middle of the two groups.

Then, for the first time in a long time, Sakura and her allies exited the jet wearing their famed black leather uniforms and stood their ground against the escaped convicts.

"We're back!" Sakura winked at the group of police, who then cheered eagerly.

"And this time, we're sticking around." Li said as he took out his golden blade.

"It's been a long time." Eriol unleashed his staff.

"We're sorry we kept you waiting." Tomoyo balled up her fists.

"It won't happen again." Cerberus growled.

"We promise." Ruby Moon spread her wings.

"Nachos." Spinel Sun simply said with a retarded look on his face.

After another tremor in the ground, Sakura charged forward and started the fight with her allies close behind. Inside the jet, Touya sat back in his seat and pulled out a magazine while Yukito unbuckled his seatbelt and prepared to exit the cockpit.

"All right, well you have fun." Touya snickered.

"What are _you_ gonna do?" Yuki gave him a dirty look.

"I don't know. Just thought I'd wait for you guys in here. Watch a few movies, listen to some music. Whatever. It's all good."

On the street, Li used a powerful wind attack to push several of the inmates into a corner. He then turned to Eriol, who was now getting ready to seal them in place with his magic staff.

"I'll hold them!" Eriol said as his staff trapped the men in a cage of rock. "Go back and get some more!"

Tomoyo grabbed hold of one of her opponent's arms and pointed his weapon in another direction, causing a series of bullets to knock down several convicts.

"Uh-oh." She gasped. "Look what you made me do!"

With a furious head-butt to the face, Tomoyo caused the man in the jumpsuit to fall to the ground and wail out in pain as the blood gushed out from his nose.

"Wow." A surprised Tomoyo said. "I didn't… I mean… It was… Whoa, cool."

Spinel and Kero, meanwhile, surrounded a good number of cons with a ring of fire and energy. With Ruby Moon hovering above, she trapped them in an energy bubble and tossed them aside to round up more bad guys.

"Keep 'em coming, boys!" She winked.

Sakura flew above the city with the powers of the Mist fused with her in an attempt to absorb the dark fog and cast it away.

"All right…" Sakura shot out three of her cards. "Loop? See if you can trap some of them in the same place. Don't let them pass beyond the roadblocks."

"You got it, boss!" The card flew to the ground.

"Lock? I want you to seal off all the weapons and ammunition shops in the area. Whatever those rioters can use as a weapon, I want them completely cut off from their reach."

"Excelsior!" The card drifted away.

"Shut up." The Shot card grumbled.

"All right, Shot." Sakura pointed at the crowds of inmates beating on the police.

"Yes, Mistress?"

"Let it rain."

The Shot spirit flew out of its card form and hurried towards the area, leaving behind a trail of powerful energy blasts. Sakura nodded and continued gathering up all the dark fog while her cards and her teammates continued to clean up the city.

Touya, on the other hand, sat in his chair in the cockpit and listened to the muzak while the distant tapping on the windshield proved to be quite soothing.

"Yeah, I hear ya knocking!" He called back with a grin. "But I don't care! Knock all you want!"

Then, in a moment that almost caused him to shit his pants, Touya fell out of his seat as the rioting escapees managed to rock the jet back and forth.

"Oh God!" He panicked. "I'm not safe anymore!"

Touya then reached over to the control panels of the plane and switched on a few weapons systems. Once they were set, he aimed one of the machine guns toward a small group and began firing.

"Yeah!" He hollered. "Come and get me! Come on! I dare ya!"

Yue hovered above the ground and unleashed a powerful shockwave that helped level the floor and push back the army of cons. Then, with the use of his telekinesis, he surrounded them in a perimeter and electrocuted them.

"Over here!" He called out to some of the police. "They won't be bothering anyone for awhile."

"You did it!" The police chief exclaimed.

"We're not done yet." Sakura finally landed on the ground.

"Don't worry. We can take care of the rest."

"Good. We've got another pain in the ass to deal with."

"Fingle?" Li asked.

"Yup. Let's go!"

As Sakura and her team entered the WarHawk, they all noticed Touya going a little gun crazy in his seat.

"Yeah! That's right! That's right!" He kept hollering about. "I smoked your ass!"

"Touya!" Sakura slapped him in the back of the head. "We've got to go!"

"Huh? Where to?"

"The Bell Tower."

* * *

**_A/N: More surprises to come, folks. And even more guest stars, if you get my drift. _;)**


	8. Rebirth

**CHAPTER EIGHT**

In a corridor directly beneath the bell in the tower, Lorca stood in the center of a circle drawn out completely with blood. The Spaniard removed his shirt and revealed the various tattoos throughout his body, which began to throb from the dark aura surrounding the area. The priests then entered, holding a set of candles and chanted in unison while Aram Fingle took out the spell book from his red cloak.

"Are you ready to begin, Lorca?" He asked.

"I am." Lorca responded.

"Very well." Fingle opened the book and began the ritual. "_Maestro de obscurum, audite nostrum placitum. Reverto ut vox, nos precor de tu._"

One of the Blood Ring priests then walked along the circle and drizzled the dirt from his holding ground on top of the blood. Lorca's skin could now feel the dark aura growing stronger within him.

"_Dulcis ex humus, vindico nos obduco._" Fingle continued reading. "_Suggero vos vires quod eternus vox._"

Another priest took out an antique oil lamp and splashed the remaining bits of oil along the blood circle, drenching the dirt.

"_Orbis de scientia, reservo vestri sapientia._"

Again, another priest revealed a glass ball from within his cloak and held it out in front of Lorca. As Fingle continued to read, the center of the orb began to swell with an eerie blue mist and pulsate with a bright glow.

"And now, Lorca…" Fingle said as he reached into his robe. "The time has come!"

Just then, Sakura and her team materialized inside the tower using the Shadow card as a means of transportation. Fingle, unwilling to back down, swung his arm out and caused a series of explosions in midair.

"Everybody spread out!" Sakura commanded.

The priests hurled themselves forward with their magically charged candles and managed to create a barrier between them and the two moon guardians.

"How the hell did these guys get so strong!?" Ruby pushed her magic dome against her opponents'.

"Blood Ring!" One of the priests called out. "_Serpentia_!"

In a flash of light, several streams of flames shaped like serpents circled around Sakura and her team, forcing them to back off while Fingle continued the ritual.

"Keep them occupied!" Fingle ordered his men.

"Sakura!" Tomoyo cried as one of the fiery streams followed her through the halls.

"Freeze!" Sakura merged with her card, raising a wall of ice.

"Come to me!" Suki called out to the fire serpents, absorbing their energy with her bare hands.

"Tremor, quake, imbalance, deform!" Maya said, causing the ground to shake and rattle.

The mental barrier between the fire serpents and the priests who summoned them was then broken for a moment as Sakura rushed over to Lorca and Fingle.

"Fingle!" Sakura yelled as she ran.

"_Cruor de vestri filius tribuo vos eternus vita._" Fingle continued to chant as he took out the Red Cinquedea and approached Lorca.

"Oh, no you don't!" Sakura blasted the floor with a lightning bolt as a warning. "Don't you even think about it, Fingle!"

"It's too late, Sakura. You can't stop me."

"Oh, yes I can!"

"_Subsisto!_" The Ringleader shot Sakura with an energy blast from his wand, paralyzing her temporarily.

"Oh, Jesus!" Sakura wailed as her entire body became engulfed with a strange tingle that prevented her from moving. "What the hell did you do to me!?"

"Sakura!" Li called out as he rolled along the floor, tackling several of the priests down. "Hold on, I'm coming!"

"No, you're not!" One of the priests zapped him from behind with a hex bolt.

Eriol encircled an area of the floor with his staff and created an energy vortex that soon ate through the demon priests. As they dissolved into nothingness, Eriol hurled his weapon across the room and enlarged the energy beam to take out the rest of the cloaked men.

"Everybody duck!" He yelled.

"Oh, God!" Marvin shrieked as he and Mr. Graham dodged the beam's blast.

"Enough!" A priest countered the vortex ray with a dark swirl of magic of his own.

"Come, Aram!" Lorca cried.

* * *

Inside the WarHawk, Touya sat back in his chair and snacked away with Suppi and Kero as they watched old reruns on the cockpit's television set.

"Oh, that Gilligan!" Suppi chuckled. "What'll he do next!?"

"Shh!" Kero stuffed his mouth with popcorn. "I think this is the one where you can see that midget hang himself in the background!"

"Actually, that's _Wizard of Oz_." Touya corrected him.

"Oh, yeah."

Spinel's face then lit up with anticipation as his eyes remained glued to the screen. "Hey, look! They're gonna show a full hour of _Hogan's Heroes_!"

"Hogan! Hogan! Hogan!" The three started to chant.

A distant rumble and they turned to look out the left side of the windshield. After a moment of silence, Spinel looked over to Kero.

"Think we should go out and help 'em?" He asked.

"Aw, screw it." Kero shrugged. "If they needed us, they wouldn't have told us to stay in the cockpit."

"Huh huh. You said--"

"Shut up."

* * *

As the fighting commenced, Lorca willingly and readily held out his arm as Fingle grabbed hold of it and began to run the blade against his skin. While the remaining few priests chanted along, the blood from Lorca dripped onto the magic circle.

"_Substantia de vita reverto ut nostrum vinco!_" Fingle grabbed Lorca's arm and squeezed out as much blood as possible onto the circle. "_Tribuo nos ops orior oriri ortus quondam iterum! Vindico obscurum quod iacio sicco lux lucis! Anhelo quondam iterum validus Faustus!" _

As the blood stopped spilling, Lorca could feel himself growing weaker as several sparks of electricity began to emit from the circle. A light soon followed that caught everyone's attention and caused the fighting to halt for just a brief moment. The mixture of the blood, oil and dirt came together and molded into a strange form, eventually rising up from the floor and taking a permanent shape.

"No…" Yue shook his head in disbelief. "It can't be."

"It is." Eriol sighed.

In no time at all, a familiar looking man in a black suit and cape materialized in front of everyone as his eyes glowed a dark red. The Blood Ring priests fell to the floor and praised the return of their savior.

"All hail… Lord Faust!" Fingle exclaimed victoriously.

After his body finished adjusting, the Dark Lord inhaled deeply and ran his hands along his face, chuckling sinisterly. He then turned to Sakura, who was still motionless on the ground and looking at him with utter fear.

"Hello, Sakura." The evil one grinned. "Did you miss me?"

"No…" Sakura couldn't believe her eyes. "I killed you. I…"

"Ripped my heart from my chest and watched it burn in your hands? Yes. Amusing, was it?"

"Well _I_ laughed my ass off, I don't know about you."

"Indeed. But now, Sakura, it looks like it's my turn."

A lightning attack from Li, Maya and Eriol managed to push the warlord back ever so slightly to give Tomoyo enough time to drag Sakura back over to safety.

"I see you still have your army at your command." Faust fanned the smoke from his chest. "Smart girl. You'll need them."

"Faust?" Lorca was astonished.

"Ah, Christopher Lorca, I presume?" The evil one softly ran his hand along his relative's face. "My wonderful descendant, yes? The one who killed Card Captor Sakura."

"I am."

"Pity she didn't stay that way."

"My lord!" Aram interrupted. "We must leave now!"

"In the face of our enemy? Never…" He stuck out his hand towards Sakura and her friends. "_Destrua!_"

A small violet haze swirled around Faust's hand but did not shoot out completely. Surprised at his sudden lack of power, the dark one gazed at his hand and hissed at his head priest.

"What is the meaning of this!?" He shouted.

"Aww… is somebody's magic all gone?" Sakura teased the man. "Come on and fight like a girl, Faust!"

"My lord, your body is still adjusting." Fingle began to explain. "You need time to recover your magic."

"But the Orb of Osiris" Faust pleaded.

"At our hideout, my lord! All is set! Fear not! We _will_ come back to finish them off."

"Very well. Blood Ring! Away!"

"No!" Sakura shot out a crackle of electricity.

But it was too late. In a blink of an eye, Faust and his priests vanished from the building. As Li and Eriol helped support Sakura, the evil warlord's voice rang out against the wind:

"_The end is near, Sakura. One of us will perish for good_."

"Damn." Graham shook his head disappointingly. "We failed to stop them. And now Faust has returned to power."

"Almost." Sakura said, trying to bring a gleam of hope. "We still have time before he regains his full potential."

"But what are we going to do?" Tomoyo asked. "If he manages to restore the Demon Knights to power, they could be unstoppable."

"Aw, jeez…" Marvin tugged at his collar. "I _definitely_ should have stayed in Jersey."


	9. A Proposition

**CHAPTER NINE**

Back at Eriol's house, the team gathered around in the library while Mr. Graham brought Sakura and her friends up to date with the Blood Ring's activities.

"The Orb of Osiris is how Faust intends to regain his power." Mr. Graham explained as he spread a sheet along the table. "It's a storing place for all his power, his memory and strength."

"What, sort of like how a computer has a backup disc?" Marvin scratched his head.

"Correct." Graham said. "Faust stored a great amount of his energy into the orb as a precaution in case he were to fall by your hand."

"Oh, good for him." Sakura sarcastically said as she put on her glasses and looked over the sheet. "Man, this stuff is old. How did they know to bring him back?"

"Apparently, he instructed those who would survive the battle on Alcatraz to come back and revive him by collecting a number of artifacts and using them in a spell."

"The Red Cinquedea…" Eriol flipped through the pages of an old spell book. "And some type of oil lamp?"

Graham nodded. "Oil from the candle of the Sangria Shrine."

"The temple where the Gauntlet was kept."

"Yes."

"So what now?"

"Right now I'm assuming they're in the process of fully revitalizing the Dark Lord."

"Where?"

"I am uncertain."

"Well, so much for putting the kibosh on his plans." Marvin slapped his forehead. "Pops, can you get a reading on this guy?"

"I don't know." The African shook his head. "Right now, we've got other things to worry about _besides_ Faust."

"What?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"Sakura, I meant to tell you this earlier but… I'm sensing something other than just demons and lost souls."

"What is it?"

"I can't explain it. It's totally inhuman but at the same time, it's from a completely other world. Nowhere near our dimension or any demonic dimension for that matter."

"Is it serious?"

"I have reason to believe it is. I sense nothing but… _malice_. Pure intent on destroying everything in its path."

"So in other words, it's like we're dealing with _two_ Fausts?" Li groaned.

"Pops, please try to stay focused on the more serious matter at hand." Graham changed his tone. "Faust _must _be stopped."

"And the entity coming for Earth?" The voodoo priest stood from his seat. "How are we to prepare for its arrival if we are too busy dealing with Faust?"

"Faust is our number one priority."

"Our priority is to make sure the Earth is safe." Suki joined in.

"Hey, who do ya have to bone to get a soda around here!?" Marvin called out, irritating Eriol.

As the bickering went on, Sakura got out of her seat and headed to another room. Once she made it to the hallway, her mind was suddenly tapped by a voice all too familiar to her.

"_Sakura. It's Kaho. I need to speak with you as soon as possible. Where are you?"_

"_**I'm at Eriol's."**_

"_Stay there. I'm on my way."_

"_**Sure. You know, a telephone is more convenient."**_

"_You forgot to turn it on."_

"What?" Sakura broke the mind link as she took out her inoperative cell phone. "Oops. My bad."

Half an hour had passed when Ms. Mizuki finally arrived at Eriol's home. After a brief moment of catching up, the school principal began to explain the situation to Sakura and her allies.

"During the riot, earlier this evening, someone tapped into my mind. He was speaking to me telepathically." She began. "He warned me that something is approaching Earth and will do terrible things."

"The entity." Pops gave Graham a smug look.

"Another magician?" Maya asked.

"No." Kaho shook her head. "He wasn't even human."

"So he was a demon?"

"Not even. I don't think he was from this world at all. Whatever dimensions lie within, he didn't seem like he was from any one of them."

Sakura stood back in shock. "Whoa, so wait a minute. Are you trying to tell me this guy's an… _alien_?"

"He could be. Although I was able to communicate with him, his brain patterns didn't match those of a normal human being's. Even for one with magical abilities."

"What did he say?" Li asked.

"He said his name is Aries. And that a warlord is coming."

"Is he on our side?"

"I have every reason to believe he is. Through the link, I could sense his desperation to stop whatever it is that's coming. And apparently, Sakura, you're the only one that can help him."

"Me? Why me?"

"Because…" A male voice startled the group. Everyone turned to see the silver haired young man in the trench coat walk towards them. "You are the only one I know who is strong enough to withstand the task that I have come to ask of you."

"Aries, I presume?" Kaho shook the man's hand.

"Yes. Kaho Mizuki, is it?"

"How did you find us?"

"Simple. I sought out your brain patterns in hopes of finding Sakura's nearby. Thankfully, my plan worked. And now here I stand before you all."

"What do you want with me?" Sakura cut to the chase. "I've got other problems to worry about."

"I know." The man sympathized. "But I'm afraid they'll have to wait if you want to prevent your world from collapsing."

"Who's this warlord you keep talking about?"

"His name is Exitir. Kane Exitir. He is the most malevolent general our people have ever known."

"Your people?" Marvin inquired.

"I am from a planet called Valdore. Millions of light-years away from your own solar system. During a routine survey mission, I and a few other Valdorians came across the existence of Earth. To prevent Exitir from getting his hands on it, we lied and told him there was nothing to be found in this particular system."

"So what happened?" Eriol asked.

"He knew we were lying right from the start. He had sent one of his own men earlier and was already aware of the existence of your planet. As punishment, he imprisoned me and my comrades and were sentenced to death. Luckily, our quick thinking allowed us to break free and commandeer an escape pod that would take us to your planet. Unfortunately, my comrades didn't survive the crash."

"How did you find about Sakura?" Tomoyo was the next to ask a question.

"During our survey mission, I managed to look up all the historical documents on your planet from the last 2000 years. When I saw your profile, Sakura, and later discovered Exitir's plans for Earth, I knew you were the likeliest candidate to save your planet from doom and destruction."

"But why _me_!?" Sakura pleaded. "Out of all the people in the world, what makes me so different from them?"

"And on another note, why are _you_ so concerned about our planet?" Li butt in.

Aries simply sighed. "Our planet was once peaceful, kind, benevolent and just. But there were those who wanted power. Power to claim everything in the name of Valdore. Exitir gathered a following and soon took over our government. He proclaimed himself ruler and wanted to seek out new planets and civilizations to conquer. And he has done so ever since. And now with Earth being his next target, I promised myself and my fallen allies that it would end here. No more would an entire race fall by his hand. That is why, Sakura, I need your help."

"But…" Sakura started to breathe heavily. "I… I can't. Aliens aren't really my forte! I mean, why don't you ask Tokyo Mew Mew? I'm sure _they_ can help!"

"I'm afraid Tokyo Mew Mew has been retired for over six years."

"Yeah and so were we!"

"Sakura, I am begging you. Not just for humanity but for Valdore itself. Our good name has been tarnished because of Kane's selfish actions. It must come to an end."

"But… Faust. He's back. If you know the crap I had to go through all those years ago, you know taking him out again is going to be a _major_ pain in the ass!"

"Then perhaps I can assist you before Exitir arrives."

Sakura thought for a moment and looked over to her friends, who didn't think it was such a bad idea. After consulting with them, Sakura sighed and nodded.

"Okay." She started. "How long do we have until Exitir gets here?"

"A matter of days."

"Right. Do you think you can track down Faust with a little mind meld?"

"I will try."

"Anyone else get the feeling something big is about to happen?" Li asked in anticipation.


	10. Xiang Zhou Revisited

**CHAPTER TEN**

"You guys!" Meiling shrieked as she ran along the halls of Eriol's home. "Seriously! Where are you!?"

After a loud crash into a nearby closet, Eriol cleared his throat and called out to her. "We're in here, Meiling. In the library."

"I knew that!" She called back.

Once inside, and after catching up with everybody, Meiling set the egg-shaped meteorite on the table for everyone to look at. The look on Aries' face only indicated that he knew what the object was.

"So it has begun." He said under his breath.

"You know what this is?" Meiling asked the strange man. "Wait a minute, who are you?"

"I'll explain later." Li took her aside.

"It's just an egg!" Nakuru scoffed.

"Shh!" Kero hushed. "It could be full of chocolate, y'know!"

"It's a timer probe." Aries continued.

"A what?" Sakura took the object away and examined it.

"It appears Exitir has already planned for his arrival. These are merely probes for his nearest fleets to scan and monitor the area while the timer counts down to the armada's full arrival."

"Why does he need a countdown?"

"Because, Sakura, when Exitir and his fleet enter your atmosphere, things will no longer be the same. He will begin an invasion of not only Earth's people but of its timeline."

"Timeline?"

"Yes." Aries tapped the tip of the egg, which opened up to reveal a small red light and a green counter. "Just as I suspected. We only have a few days."

"Yeah but what happens then?"

"He will send groups of Valdorians into the past and future of your world and cause severe damage to the timelines, needless to say what he will already be doing to you in the present."

"But I don't get it." Graham interrupted. "Why the past and future?"

"He is very thorough in his conquests. By eliminating Earth's defenses in the past, there will be no way for the present to defend themselves. Eliminating your defenses in the future will only further insure the annihilation of your people."

"No way in, no way out." Li nodded along, at last getting the idea.

"What about those who stay in the present?" Sakura asked. "How can we be here if our past is being destroyed?"

"As much as I would like to answer your questions, Sakura, we must make sure there will be no need to ask them. Time is a luxury we don't have. Exitir must be stopped at once."

"Okay." Sakura sighed. "You're right. First, we take care of Faust."

"Agreed."

"Wait, Faust is back!?" Meiling panicked. "What else have I missed, huh? How 'bout Lorca? He doing good for himself?"

"The Blood Ring freed him." Li smirked.

"What!?"

"And now I expect they're working on getting the Demon Knights back."

"Oh, God…" Meiling started to hyperventilate. "I'm not ready for this… it's too much… too many bad guys…"

"If you want out, Meiling, I understand." Sakura put a hand on her friend's shoulder. "We can take care of it."

"What and let you have all the fun? Yeah, you wish!"

A smile spread across Sakura's face. "You missed it, didn't you?"

"Of course!" She then noticed Sakura's new features. "Hey, you got glasses! Haha!"

"_Hoe_!" Sakura quickly removed her lenses. "Can we just focus, please!? Aries?"

"I've already located them." Aries' eyes glowed white. "They're on an island of some sort. Undisclosed."

"An island?"

"Near a temple of some sort."

Li immediately knew where they were. "Oh no. They're at the Temple of Xiang Zhou."

Meiling's face turned pale. "The… Temple of… Xiang… Zhou?"

* * *

Inside his small laboratory, Kanaye wheeled himself over to his desk as a blinking red light emanated from his computer. The faint beeping indicated the tracking device on the WarHawk was still operational. 

"Hello…" Kanaye punched up the jet's trajectory on his computer screen.

Hiroshi kept his eyes on the blinking dot as it slowly moved around the grid. From what he could tell, the jet was indeed leaving Tomoeda but to where he was unsure.

"Tricky girl..." He chuckled to himself. "Let's see where our old friends are going."

* * *

**The Pentagon**

"What's the status of that signal, Major?" General Armstrong called out as he paced around the Space Command.

"We're still trying to decrypt it, sir!" Major Edison replied as he and several other technicians continued jotting down notes.

Meanwhile, the President was waiting patiently as he watched the entire Space Command run around in a frenzy via satellite feed.

"The people are getting anxious, General!" The President growled. "We don't have time to keep bullshitting them! How long until that freak storm reaches us?"

"We're working on it, sir." The General sighed. "Right now we've got all our best and brightest trying to decode this damn signal. Hopefully, when we break it, it'll shed some light as to why--"

"I don't give a damn about some alien signal, General. It could be radio interference for all we know. I just need to know when exactly this storm will reach us! It's been two days now! Europe's already in a mass frenzy! The more time we waste, the more vulnerable we become!"

"Understood, sir."

"Now I know you and your men are doing your best. But can you assure me, in the interest of national security, that nobody else can pick up on this so-called 'signal'?"

"Of course not. To do so, the person would have to be some kind of advanced computer whiz. I mean, one whose skills would severely dwarf our own. Rest assured, sir, I highly doubt there's anyone like that out there."

* * *

**The Hinata Apartments**

"Hey, wow! Look at this weird signal I picked up!" An overly hyper Kaolla Su exclaimed as she rapidly typed on her computer while hanging upside down. "It's really neat! I don't think I've ever seen anything like it before!"

As the strange foreigner continued fingering through her keyboard, trying to decode the signal coming from space, the other tenants of the Hinata Inn stared at her from behind the door.

"She's been at that computer all day." Shinobu nervously said. "Even more than usual."

"What are you talking about?" Naru scratched her head.

"Well for one thing," Keitaro started. "She hasn't even bothered to stop and hit me for anything! Actually… I kind of like it this way."

"She's obviously going on about _something_."

"Yeah." Motoko nodded. "Some sort of signal."

"Oh my God!" Keitaro panicked and rushed over to Su's desk. "Kaolla! Get off now! You could be tapping into some other country's military defenses and if you are, we're gonna be in really big trouble! No! Wait! _I'm_ gonna be in really big trouble! _I'm_ the manager! _I'm_ responsible for your actions! Oh, God! I'm going to jail! No! I can't! I just can't! I just--"

_**POW! **_

Naru managed to shut her husband up with a massive punch to the face. "Will you relax, Keitaro!? You're the manager, not her father!"

"Yeah… good call…" Keitaro responded in a daze.

"You guys aren't listening to me!" Kaolla pleaded with them. "I think I'm onto something big here!"

"So…" Ktisune looked over to her friends. "…Should we call the men in white coats now or later?"

"It seems like it's coming from outer space or something!" Kaolla gasped. "Oh, cool!"

"Now!" Everyone responded.

* * *

**Elsewhere…**

The WarHawk passed the gateway in the sky and easily phased through the gray clouds. Once the island was spotted, the jet made its landing safely and without conflict. When the ramp lowered, Sakura, Li, Eriol, Tomoyo, Meiling, Mr. Graham, Aries and Kaho stepped onto the moonlit beach.

"Oh, man…" Meiling almost gagged. "I can still hear those banjos."

"There weren't any banjos." Li shook his head. "You gotta stop watching those movies, they keep putting stuff in your head."

"It's _my_ head, not yours!"

"Sure is dark out here." Tomoyo put her arm around Eriol's.

"Nothing to worry about." He reassured her. "… I hope."

"Why would Faust come here?" Graham asked.

"I don't know." Sakura responded as she took out a card. "But I'm sure he had a reason."

The last to exit the jet were Yue and three of Graham's assistants while Touya, Nakuru, Kero and Spinel remained seated inside the cockpit.

"Be careful, Touya." Sakura told her brother. "It can get pretty rough out here."

"Yeah, well so can we!" Nakuru joked. "Right, boys?"

She turned to see Kero and Spinel fighting over a bag of goodies while Touya watched in amusement. With a heavy sigh, Nakuru shook her head and sat down on her seat, giving Sakura a thumbs up.

* * *

"Where the hell have they gone?" Kanaye desperately tried to search for the jet's position on his screen. "They just disappeared!" 

Angry and confused, the man searched every square inch of the map to try and get an idea of where the WarHawk could be. Once he realized it was futile, a spark of enlightenment suddenly filled his head.

"Wait a minute…" He continued. "If they're not on the map… then they must be somewhere… that's meant to be hidden."

A grin then spread across his face. "They're at the temple. Oh, Sakura… you're just full of surprises, aren't you?"

* * *

Once the group made it to the village, they noticed a small bonfire dying out. There was nobody to be seen or heard from, much to Meiling's fear. 

"What, no welcome back party?" She quipped. "Hello? Anybody here?"

"Shh, Meiling." Kaho shushed. "Something doesn't feel quite right."

"I sense it too." Sakura nodded.

"So do I." Li agreed.

With a wave of her hand, Kaho managed to enliven the bonfire and light up several torches along the village. In doing so, she and the group came upon a gruesome discovery.

"Oh dear God…" Sakura put her hands to her mouth in shock.

The villagers, whom Li and Meiling had a run-in with several years ago, were all laid out across the sandy floor. Dead. Some were mauled by an unknown assailant, others were incinerated and some simply had their throats cut. A wasteland of blood and terror was all that remained of the ancient tribe.

"Faust." Sakura balled up her fists. "He did this, didn't he?"

"Did what?" Meiling kneeled over one of the dead villagers. "Hey, wake up!"

"Meiling…"

"C'mon, wake up!" She started to slap the person around. "Man, these are heavy sleepers!"

"Meiling, please…"

"Oi!" She gently kicked the body. "What the hell's their problem! Hello? Remember me? I brought you the Almighty Mickey!"

"Meiling, they're all dead!" Li lost his temper.

"Dead?"

Li held up a blackened skeleton and shook it in front of her. "Yes, dead! Don't you see!? Faust murdered them all!"

"Ah." Meiling immediately jumped away from the corpse and patted another on the head. "My bad."

"Sakura." Aries pointed out atop of a hill. "I believe that is where we must go."

"Hold on…" Sakura walked around the dead bodies and quickly ran up a grassy knoll.

Once at the top, she immediately saw a jagged black tower standing tall and proud in the middle of the jungle. A dark aura was also visible as well as a couple of dragons, encircling the area.

"You're right, Aries." Sakura nodded. "He's here. The bastard's inside that castle."

Li, Tomoyo and Eriol climbed up the mound and stood next to Sakura, also getting a glimpse at the black tower.

"I guess now we go and stop him, huh?" Li suggested.

"Yup." Sakura unleashed the Sword. "Before more lives are taken."

And with that, Sakura and her team headed for the heart of the jungle, where an unexpected turn of events was waiting for them.

* * *

**_A/N: If that last cameo was a bit confusing for you or rather unexpected, just you wait. I've got several more tricks up my sleeve._ ;)**


	11. The Black Tower

**CHAPTER ELEVEN**

Sakura, Li, Tomoyo, Eriol, Kaho, Meiling, Yue, Aries, Graham and his assistants slowly trekked through the dark jungle as the aura emanating from the black tower illuminated the night sky with a purple haze.

"We must hurry." Aries said. "Time is running out."

"Yeah, yeah." Meiling rolled her eyes back. "What else is new?"

"How do we plan on getting in there?" Li asked Sakura.

"We'll use the Shadow." Sakura said, pulling the card out. "We'll hide under its cloak and have it transport us inside."

"Wait, how do we even know what the place looks like?" Meiling butt in.

"It is empty." Aries' eyes glowed white again. "From what I can see, there is no one in the halls. Just empty corridors of solid black rock."

Li just gave him a strange look. "Any other abilities you want to tell us about?"

"Okay." Sakura grinned as she unleashed the Shadow spirit. "Shadow!"

"_What_?" The card grumbled.

"We need you to take us inside that tower!"

"_Uhh… okay_."

In no time at all, the Shadow spirit wrapped itself around the group and slithered its way through the trees and bushes of the strange wilderness. Once it approached the black tower, the Shadow then slinked around the edges and entered through one of the building's many jagged cracks.

Sakura and her friends found themselves inside the halls of the black tower, where Aries' scan of the area proved to be right. It was empty, lit only by a few torches and revealed a small trail that led around to a corner of the hallway.

"Should we follow that thing?" Tomoyo asked, clinging to Eriol some more.

"If it leads us to Faust, then we must." Graham said.

"Wait." Yue stopped them. "It could be a trap."

"Do you know where it leads to?"

"I…" Aries' eyes began to glow again. This time, he had a more difficult time trying to break through. "…I can't seem to link with anyone. However, they _are_ in this building."

"Oh, hell." Sakura sighed, unleashing the Sword. "I'm going!"

The trail they followed led them around the corner of the hallway, down another corridor and approached a large black archway with a gray and blue haze encircling it. Graham stepped forward to examine the eerie mist.

"It's a doorway all right." Graham nodded. "Recently opened, in fact. I'm willing to bet money that this thing will take us directly to Faust and his cronies."

"You want we should go first, sir?" One of his assistants asked.

"No. I say we charge in and fight."

"Hell of an idea!" Meiling got excited. "So who's going in first?"

There was a long pause as everyone nervously looked around, trying not to be the first one elected to go in. A moment later, Li sighed and stepped forward.

"All right, fine…" He said. "In you go, Eriol!"

"What!?" The boy shrieked as he found himself being pushed through the magic archway.

A stream of lightning flashed in midair as Eriol came falling down from within. As he landed on the floor, more and more of his allies began to pour in.

"Li!" Eriol furiously approached him.

"What?" Li easily dodged the boy's punch. "You act like I meant to hurt you or something."

"Where are we?" Tomoyo looked around the large, round room.

Sakura and her friends stood idly in the center of what seemed to be a large gold disc while around them, pillars of black stone and marble lit up with more of that familiar purple aura. Leading from the center of the gold disc and in between two of the pillars, a raised platform with an empty throne suddenly came into view.

"Where the hell did _that_ come from?" Meiling gulped.

"Keep your eyes open." Sakura alerted the group.

"Sakura." Yue started, keeping absolutely still.

"Yes, Yue?"

"Perhaps we shouldn't be here. It is possible Faust set all of this up merely as a distraction and not as a course of action."

"You mean we came here for nothing!?" Li let his guard down.

"I wouldn't say that exactly!" A familiar voice hissed.

Soon, Sakura and the others were all knocked to the floor as several streams of black lightning hit them one by one. As the light tapped the ground, bursts of red, green, blue and purple fire encircled the group as a small spark of electricity crackled along the gold platform.

After the fires had died down, it was now apparent that the group was too late. Surrounding them, were the deadly Demon Knights. The sword-wielding Blue Knight, scythe-slashing Red Knight, axe-bearing Green Knight and mace-swinging Purple Knight all gazed at Sakura and her friends as their skulls were set ablaze with their respective colors.

"Aw, damn it!" Sakura whined like a guy who just missed the 10:00 train.

"My old friends!" Faust materialized before the throne in a blaze of yellow fire. "Welcome! What do you think of the new and improved Demon Knights?"

"They still look the same." Sakura growled.

"Yes but they're no longer under my control. You remember Lorca, don't you?"

A cleaned up Christopher Lorca stepped from behind the throne, wearing the refurbished Sangria Gauntlet over his right arm. His left hand slowly caressed the black gem that was placed in the glove's center.

"How did you do it, Faust?" Eriol demanded to know. "The gems were destroyed."

"Didn't you hear what I said, boy!?" Aram Fingle appeared from behind. "The gems left behind a magic residue. All Faust had to do was collect enough of the imprints to forge copies of the gems."

"Hey, Fingle!" Li started to provoke the man. "Hungry, Fingle? Wants some Pringles, Fingle?"

"Yeah! You make me tingle, Fingle!" Kaho joined in. "Are you single, Fingle? Gimme a jingle, Fingle!"

"Shut up!" The dark priest ordered.

"You gonna tinkle, Fingle?" Li added some more.

"You lousy--"

"Enough, Aram!" Faust snapped. "They are merely trying to rile you into fighting so they can distract me."

"Forgive me, my lord."

"Now, Sakura…" Faust descended the steps from the platform. "I believe I made an offer to you several years ago."

"You wanted me to join you." Sakura nodded. "Sorry. But it's still not happening."

"I see. Then perhaps you'll need the proper motivation."

Sakura took a swing at the Dark Lord but he immediately grabbed her by the hand and forced her down on her knees. Soon, the Demon Knights and members of the Blood Ring held Sakura's friends captive with their respective weapons held up against them.

"Oh, no…" Tomoyo trembled as one of the dark priests' held a knife to her throat.

"Sakura…" Li strained as the Green Knight pulled him by the hair while holding his axe firmly behind.

"Last chance, Sakura." Faust warned. "You join me or watch them suffer."

"Don't do it, Sakura!" Graham shouted. "He's useless. He's an embarrassment to the world of magic."

"Excuse me?" Faust eyeballed Graham as he threw Sakura down. "And who might you be?"

"Faust!" Sakura got back up but was immediately paralyzed by one of Aram's spells.

"Let him go." Faust ordered one of his priests.

The red hood nodded and pushed Graham forward, who immediately came face to face with the evil warlord. Faust grinned as he walked around the old man, his cape gently swaying behind.

"You dare call me an embarrassment?" Faust hissed.

"I do." Graham stood still, unafraid of the man.

"Ah, yes… I remember you. You were the one with Sakura's army back on Alcatraz. You helped lead them to victory."

"Sakura led them to victory. I was merely a humble servant in the name of all that is good."

"You know, I'd be careful about what you say about other people. Lies have a tendency to--"

"I only speak the truth… _Johann_."

"How dare you speak my first name!" He struck the old man with the back of his hand. "Come now! Fight me if you're so brave!"

"It is futile to challenge him, Faust." Aries interrupted.

"And who are you!?"

"I am… not of this world."

"And why shouldn't I fight this man?"

"A force too great for you to comprehend is approaching this planet. He and his followers will attempt to overthrow the planet and leave nothing to survive."

"I like him already." Faust then turned back over to Graham. "Fight me, Mr. James Elliot Graham!"

"Very well." The old man took out his wand.

"No, James!" Eriol called out. "Don't!"

"He's too dangerous for you to fight alone!" Sakura pleaded as she struggled to crawl over the gold disc.

"Leave me be." Graham responded as he pointed his wand at his opponent. "You shall regret this, Faust."

"As will you." The warlord grinned as he stuck out his hand.

In an instant, the evil one's arm released a long stream of fire and headed straight for the old man but Graham managed to emit a freezing spell to thwart off the attack and turn away.

"Where are you going, Graham!? _Plecto Aliquem_!" A bright orange energy stream shot from Faust's hand.

"Neutron!" Graham's wand countered with a yellow beam.

The two energy streams met in the middle, causing a bright lightshow of sparks and a loud whistling noise to fill the room. As the bulging center of the two streams intensified, the ground started to shake as everyone shielded their eyes from the battle.

Graham and Faust held their ground for a good while until Lorca intervened and knocked the old man to the floor with the backend of his metallic glove. This caused Faust's dark energy to knock Graham back into the wall, where it was revealed that a set of church-type windows encircled the area as well. This furthermore revealed to the group that they were higher up in the tower rather than below as they were led to believe.

"Your time is at an end, old man." Faust said as two of the Blood Ring priests held Graham up.

"You _will_ be stopped… I swear to you…" Graham grew weary. "Sakura will find another way!"

"Yes, yes. Good, good." Faust waved off the man's remarks. "Kill him."

"No!" Sakura screamed. "Don't let them kill him!"

"What?" Faust looked down on Sakura, who was still trying to regain her mobility. "Oh, you're still here. Yes, perhaps they shouldn't kill him after all."

"Sakura…" Graham strained.

"Looks like _I'll_ have to do it!"

"Faust!" Sakura cried.

"_Destrua_!"

And just like that, the deed was done. The bright red bolt of energy that hit the old man in the heart, caused him to fall to his knees as the two priests backed away. Graham's eyes rolled back as a draft of blood poured from his mouth, leaving Faust to levitate the old man and toss him out the window. The body fell from the top of the tower, hitting the side only once, until it landed on the grassy hill and tumbled after, where it eventually shattered on top of a rocky slab.

"Oh, my God…" Meiling breathed heavily. "…I didn't know this place had windows!"

"Excuse me, can I… Yeah? Thanks." Tomoyo broke free from her captor only briefly and smacked Meiling in the back of the head. "Idiot!"

* * *

**_A/N: Mr. Graham's dead. _:(_ And this time, whoever dies STAYS DEAD… unless noted otherwise, y'know?_**


	12. The Dead Sing

**CHAPTER TWELVE**

"And now, Sakura!" Faust levitated her towards him. "It's your turn!"

"I won't join you…" A startled Sakura said softly.

"No? Then perhaps I need to kill another one of your friends to show you just how serious I am." He then placed his hand around Kaho's face. "Your teacher, perhaps?"

"Kaho!"

"Don't listen to him, Sakura. Whatever happens, don't fall to the dark side." Kaho bravely warned.

"_Sakura…_" Aries linked his mind to hers. "_On my command, fuse with an attack card. Your distraction will allow me to teleport us out of here._"

Sakura kept quiet and gave Faust a dirty look as she began to feel her body again. "Fine, Faust. You win. Don't hurt her."

"Good girl, Sakura." The Dark Lord grinned. "Give me your hand as a sign of allegiance."

Sakura returned to the floor and slowly walked over to Faust. Anticipating Aries' signal, she extended her hand out to Faust's and held it firmly until finally, the word was given.

"Excellent, Sakura. What do you have to say now?"

She grinned. "Shot!"

In an instant, a bolt of energy spiraled out of Sakura's hand and blew Faust's forearm to pieces, causing him to scream in pain. Then more and more beams of energy flew from Sakura, blasting her enemies down from every direction. Aries used the opportunity to gather the team up with a strip of kinetic energy and teleported them all out in a spark of light.

"They got away!" Fingle shouted. "Blood Ring! After them! Don't let them escape the island!"

"Worry not, Fingle…" Faust breathed heavily as his hand rematerialized. "…I anticipated an outcome such as this. Therefore, I have my Dead Walkers already on standby."

* * *

Outside the tower, Sakura and her friends were hauling ass back to the jet when they came across Graham's broken dead body.

"Mr. Graham…" Eriol gasped.

"How did he…" Meiling covered her mouth. "…How did he die?"

"Heart implosion." Yue answered. "He never stood a chance. Come, we must leave now before it is too late."

Sakura nodded as she lit the way using the Light card. As they followed her down the path of the wet beach, Aries could immediately sense something wrong.

"Wait…" He stopped. "Something isn't right."

"What is it?" Li groaned. "Come on, Aries. They'll be here soon!"

"No, Li." Eriol looked around. "I feel it too. Can't you?"

From somewhere in the distance, a song could be heard playing. This caught Tomoyo's attention, causing her to look around as well.

_§ It's Close To Midnight And Something Evil's Lurking In The Dark _

_Under The Moonlight You See A Sight That Almost Stops Your Heart §_

"Do you hear music?" She asked.

"Actually, I do." Sakura nodded. "Come on. Let's keep moving."

Just then, a decayed limb shot up from the sand and grabbed hold of Tomoyo's leg, trying to bring her down.

"What?" She calmly looked down and picked at the arm. "Hey, guys? There's like an arm or something pulling at me. It's all moldy and rotten. It's kind of nasty, really. And these are my favorite pants."

_§ You Try To Scream But Terror Takes The Sound Before You Make It _

_You Start To Freeze As Horror Looks You Right Between The Eyes, _

_You're Paralyzed §_

More and more limbs sprung out around the beach as moldy corpses and brittle skeletons clawed their way through the sand. They growled and wailed in pain, intimidating Sakura and her friends in the process.

"Dear God…" Kaho winced. "Are they dead?"

"Well not anymore!" Meiling held her stomach, holding back her vomit. "Oh, Jesus… that's nasty!"

"The Dead Walkers." Eriol suddenly remember. "Yue?"

"Yes." The guardian nodded. "Apparently Faust came prepared."

"Dead Walkers my ass! Them's zombies!" Sakura shrieked as she ran up to Li, who was at a loss for words. "Li, we've got to fight them off! Li? Li, answer me! What's wrong?"

Li just dropped his jaw and slowly shook his head as the undead approached them. "Oh, fuck this!"

He grabbed Sakura by the arm and ran along the sand, hacking away at several zombies with his sword. The others remained close behind, Eriol and Yue using their magic to keep the undead at bay. Graham's men were suddenly pulled down and ripped to shreds, much to everybody's expectations. I mean, come on. Anyone who's ever seen Star Trek knows the Red Shirts _always_ get the shit end of the stick.

_§ Cause This Is Thriller, Thriller Night _

_And No One's Gonna Save You From The Beast About Strike _

_You Know It's Thriller, Thriller Night _

_You're Fighting For Your Life Inside A Killer, Thriller Tonight §_

"Graham's men!" Tomoyo called out. "We lost them!"

"Well we lost their boss, might as well lose them too!" Meiling snapped.

"Keep going! I'll cover you!" Sakura ordered as she stopped and turned to face the oncoming zombie horror.

She flicked out the Fire card and merged with its power, engulfing her body in flames once again. Taking to the skies via the Fly, she let loose a rain of fire that managed to take out the majority of the undead. The attack came to halt, however, when the Red Knight knocked into her with its skeletal steed.

_§ You Hear The Door Slam And Realize There's Nowhere Left To Run _

_You Feel The Cold Hand And Wonder If You'll Ever See The Sun §_

"Oh, crap…" Sakura groaned. "I forgot about you guys."

"Silence…" He swung his scythe but missed.

"Give me that!" Sakura disarmed the Knight and kicked the horse in the head, sending it plummeting to the beach.

"Mistress!" Yue flew into the air.

"No, Yue! Stay with them! The WarHawk is just beyond those trees!"

"What are you going to do?"

"I don't know yet. I'm just making this up as I go along!"

_§ You Close Your Eyes And Hope That This Is Just Imagination _

_But All The While You Hear The Creature Creepin' Up Behind _

_You're Out Of Time §_

Sakura swooped past another section of rising dead and picked up the Red Knight, whose flames were starting to intensify.

"Hi!" She said to him. "Can I borrow you for a sec? Thanks!"

Sakura kept her grip on the Knight and flew him around in circles, causing his flames to rise even higher. Once he had reached the intensity desired, Sakura hurled him back down to the beach and watched as an explosion of red heat incinerated the rest of Faust's undead.

Meanwhile, Li ran towards the parked WarHawk, flailing his arms about like a lunatic to get the pilot's attention.

_§ They're Out To Get You, There's Demons Closing In On Every Side _

_They Will Possess You Unless You Change The Number On Your Dial §_

"Is that Li?" Kero asked, placing his face against the windshield.

"Star the jet! Start the God damn jet!" Li griped as he and the others boarded the ramp.

"Where's Sakura?" Nakuru noticed she was missing.

"She should have been back by now!" Tomoyo started to worry. "Li, you don't think…"

"No." He shook his head. "She's coming. I know she is."

Sakura hurried through the trees and made a fast landing on the dry sand, where the jet was awaiting her arrival. As she continued to pursue the plane on foot, she suddenly realized her deck was not complete.

_§ Now Is The Time For You And I To Cuddle Close Together _

_All Through The Night I'll Save You From The Terror On The Screen, _

_I'll Make You See §_

"Uh-oh…" She looked around. "Wait a minute…"

"Sakura, hurry up!" Kaho called out to her.

"What is she doing?" Aries asked them, to which they all shrugged.

"Sakura!" Li held out his hand as he stood on the ramp.

"Wait!" She called back. "I'm missing a card!"

"Which one!?"

The music could now be heard clearly as they all turned to see the Song card dressed in a red leather jacket á la Michael Jackson singing and dancing with a group of zombies in the style of, what else, "_Thriller_".

_§ That This Is Thriller, Thriller Night _

_'Cause I Can Thrill You More Than Any Ghost Would Dare To Try _

_Girl, This Is Thriller, Thriller Night _

_S__o Let Me Hold You Tight And Share A Killer, Diller, Chiller _

_Thriller Here Ton-- §_

Like a needle scratching a record, Sakura broke up the song-and-dance routine and called back her card. "Hey! Song! Get your ass back over here now!"

"Oh, yeah right." Song nervously giggled as she returned to her card form and into Sakura's bag.

"All right, let's get the hell out of here!"

"Beans!" Sweet suddenly popped out, drooling like crazy.

"Not now, damn you!" Sakura shoved the spirit back into its card and leaped inside the jet as it began to lift.

"Okay, everybody!" Touya started as he quickly maneuvered the controls. "Hang on to something!"

Yukito quickly took his seat next to Touya and powered the thrusters. "And away we go!"

A thunderous crash echoed through the dark sky as Faust and his minions watched the WarHawk leave the realm of Xiang Zhou.

"They got away." Fingle shook his head.

"Yes but with what?" Faust cheekily grinned. "Nothing. Therefore, they pose no danger to us at all."

* * *

"What was the point of all _that_!?" Meiling finally broke the silence in the plane. "We go in, get transported to the top of some big-ass tower, they kill Graham then we get chased out by a bunch of zombies! I mean… what! The! _Hell_!?"

"We were supposed to get the Orb of Osiris and prevent them from reawakening the Demon Knights." Kaho sighed. "Looks like we fudged up."

Sakura nodded then turned to a distraught Eriol. "I'm sorry about Mr. Graham, Eriol."

"He…" Eriol choked for a second. "…He wouldn't want us to back out now. We have to keep fighting."

"And that's exactly what I plan on doing."

Yukito toggled through the controls as the plane finally exited the portal and returned to their normal realm.

* * *

Inside his lab, Kanaye immediately heard the computer bleep from his monitor and sat back down. He drew up the plane's trajectory and noticed they were now heading over a body of ocean.

"Okay, then." He said, setting up a radio frequency. "It's time to see how fast your plane can sink."


	13. Fall Of The WarHawk

**CHAPTER THIRTEEN**

"You can't scare me, Matsumoto." Sonomi spoke into her phone. "Whatever you make, I'll come up with something better."

"Ooh, sounds like someone's scared of me…" Maki goaded through the phone. "Face it, Daidouji. I've got the real goods now. You're yesterday's _korokke_!"

"We'll see about that! Starting tomorrow, the DJ Run 'N' Play Sakura doll will sell for 20!"

"Ha! The Glamour Glitz Sakura with assorted glasses is already at 15! Beat that, _homemaker_!"

"You--! Fine! The 3 piece Sakura, Syaoran and Tomoyo plush set will sell for 10! How's _them_ apples!?"

Maki just yawned. "Oh, please. My _five_ pack with Sakura, Syaoran, Tomoyo, Kero and Suppi will go for 7!"

"What!? Seven!? Are you out of your mind!?"

"Them's the breaks."

"WarHawk play set with miniature Touya and Yukito! 13!"

"Really? Thirteen?"

"Yes!" Sonomi laughed, realizing she had the better deal. "Ha ha! I got you!"

"No, no." Maki chuckled. "I meant that it seemed a little too high. I've got it for 11."

"Son of a--!" And with that, an angry Sonomi hung up the phone as Fujitaka sat in his living room, reading the paper.

"So how'd it go?" He asked her.

"I cannot believe that woman!" She ran her hands through her hair like a crazy person. "Selling all those items for such a low price? And some of her original ideas are better than mine! I can't believe it!"

"Well, didn't it ever occur to you to include Suppi and Kero in the plush collection?"

"They're already plushies! Why the hell do I need to make more!?"

"Actually, I think Suppi's a cat."

"Whatever! Oh, that woman is going down!"

"Right, I'll call the press." Fujitaka sarcastically said.

Sonomi then let off a frustrated sigh from the sound of her phone. Hesitantly, she answered it. "Yeah, what is it!?"

"Hello, Ms. Daidouji." The eerie voice on the other end started. "It's good to hear from you again."

"Who is this?"

"An old business partner you may recall."

"I don't know what you're talking about."

"Oh, I think you do. I seem to remember a certain deal we worked out six years ago concerning a means of transportation for your daughter and her friends."

The horrified look on Sonomi's face managed to grab Fujitaka's attention. "Sonomi? What is it? Who are you talking to?"

"…Kanaye."

"What?"

"Very good, Ms. Daidouji." Kanaye continued. "You remember. And don't try to track this number, you'll never find it."

"What do you want, Hiroshi?" Her tone suddenly changed.

"Oh, nothing. Just to tell you that I'll be going back on my end of the bargain."

"What end?"

"I promised you no one could get hurt flying around in that plane. Well it just so happens, I found a way. And I intend on using it."

"Don't you dare! Sakura and--"

"Sakura will be left helpless. As will her friends, once they see what I've equipped the jet with."

"You son of a b--"

"Good night."

The phone instantly hung up, leaving Sonomi confused and upset. "No… Oh, dear God…"

"Sonomi, I don't get it. What did he want?" Fujitaka was now concerned. "What did he say?"

"They're in trouble, Fujitaka. Our kids are in trouble."

* * *

Inside the WarHawk, Aries looked out the window and sat down with his head in a daze. Sakura noticed this and sat beside him.

"Are you okay, Aries?" She asked.

"I'll be fine." He answered groggily. "I'm not used to using my telekinetic energies in this atmosphere. The frequency standards are much higher and thus take a lot more energy from me."

"Sorry."

"Sakura, I'm sorry we couldn't accomplish this mission."

"So am I."

"But we must focus on Exitir. According to the timer probe, we have less than a day and a half before he arrives."

"Okay…" Sakura sighed hesitantly. "…What exactly do we have to do?"

Before Aries could explain, Touya noticed his controls starting to malfunction and called out to Sakura. "Hey, _kaiju_! Get over here!"

"What do you want, ass-face?"

"Our controls are starting to give out! Fix it!"

"What do you mean fix it!? Do I look like a mechanic to you!?"

"Yeah but don't you have a card or something that can, y'know, _do_ stuff?"

"Touya, stop playing around! Yuki, you tell him!"

"No, he's right!" Yukito started flipping the switches on his board. "We're flying but nothing's responding!"

Just then, a flat screen lowered itself from the top control panel of the cockpit and switched on. Much to everyone's horror, Hiroshi Kanaye greeted them from the monitor.

"Hello, Tokyo Knights." He said with a grin.

"What else is on?" Meiling asked, searching for a remote.

"Kanaye." Sakura faced the screen. "How are you doing this? Let us go right now."

"Don't be frightened, Sakura." The man chuckled. "Your plane will make it to the ground. But _you_ won't."

"What do you mean?"

"I intend to crash this plane and kill each and every one of you before you even get to the air hangar. If you look out your windows now, you can see you're still above the water. For now, anyway…"

"Okay, I've heard enough." Sakura said as she took out a card.

But before anything could happen, a spark of light caused an invisible ray of energy to shoot out from the jet's computers and knock Sakura, Eriol, Yukito, Nakuru and Aries unconscious.

"Sakura!" Li cried as he unbuckled his safety belt and hurried over to her.

"Eriol?" Tomoyo leaned over the boy. "Oh, no… Yukito? Nakuru?"

"You killed them." Touya growled.

"No, not yet." Kanaye said. "I simply knocked them out with an ionic pulse. Their mental states are in a sort of limbo right now, preventing them from using their magical abilities."

"Then why didn't it take _us_ out?" Kero demanded to know.

"Your magic isn't as strong as the others. Therefore, I seen no need to worry about you stopping my plans."

"You should! We could stop the plane from crashing ourselves!"

"I highly doubt that."

"Well, he called our bluff." Spinel backed away. "We're dead, Kero."

"And now, old friends…" Kanaye continued. "I bid you farewell."

The entire side of Yukito's control board exploded, sending several shards of metal wiring, debris and fire across the chambers of the plane. Luckily, nobody was hurt but the plane's elevation started to decline. Touya remained seated as he waved the smoke away and watched as they headed for the ocean.

"Oh, shit!" He cried. "Everybody hang onto something! We're gonna crash into the water!"

"What!?" Kero started to panic. "This isn't good! This isn't good! Spinel! Do something!"

"I am!" The cat hid under his seat. "I'm kissing my ass goodbye!"

"Wait a minute." Touya noticed a body of land coming into view. "We're almost home… okay, new plan! I'm gonna try to land this baby somewhere in the woods! But I'm gonna need help!"

"You got it…" Li said as he unleashed his sword and activated a wind spell.

The wind surrounded the plane and helped level it above the ocean, giving Touya more time to take evasive action. Li held his sword firmly against the magic ofuda as the plane started to shake and rattle.

"Touya…" He strained. "I can't hold on much longer!"

"Okay, okay, okay…" Touya breathed heavily as pulled down the controls with all his might.

Just then, a mountain came clear into view and startled everyone. Touya attempted to dodge the mound of rock but it was already to late. With a massive hit to the hull, everyone in the passenger area flew to the back of the plane and hit themselves against the wall.

"Oh, great. The power's out!" Meiling whined as she noticed the blackout inside the jet.

The WarHawk flung across the air, its engines now dead, and eventually hit the ground with a heavy thud. The impact led all of the passengers to fly and hit the ceiling, knocking a few more unconscious. The plane didn't stop there, however, as it started to slide through the wilderness, knocking down several trees and ripping out chunks of earth. Inside the cockpit, Touya continued to steer the plane with whatever power he had left but still couldn't avoid running through the tall trees. Kaho, with all her might, held out her arms and tried to bring the jet to a stop using her kinetic energy. Meanwhile, Li held onto an injured Tomoyo and rocked intensely to the motion of the plane, hearing nothing but the sparks from the interior, the squeaking of the loose metal and the rumbling from the outside.

"Almost there!" Kaho strained.

Touya screamed out in pain as he pulled on the controls with all his might, hoping to end this nightmare. Once the amount of trees and solid rock caught up to the damaged WarHawk, the plane finally managed to stop but not before leaving behind one last jolt that sent everybody forward. In the silence that followed, Touya cleared the debris from himself and looked around for his friends. The lights were all out, emergency power was now one hundred percent gone and the interior of the plane was a huge mess. Kaho fell to her knees, exhausted and slightly inured. Kero and Suppi eventually came around and woke up to the mess that surrounded them.

"Oh, man…" Suppi gasped. "He got us good."

Li, his arms protectively around Tomoyo, looked around the plane and removed himself from her slowly. "Tomoyo?"

"I'm okay." She nodded. "…I'm fine."

"Right." Li slowly got up and hurried over to Sakura, who was covered under a stack of debris. "Sakura… hold on…"

Touya looked up at the gaping hole above the cockpit and could see the moon shining down on them. The heavily damaged plane was now in the middle of the forest with a path of destruction leading behind them. Inside they waited until the ambulances arrived.


	14. A New Set Of Plans

**CHAPTER FOURTEEN**

More screams filled the air as Sakura stood in the middle of the burning field, a dark cloak hanging behind her. With the blade held firmly in her hand, she raised it to the sky and absorbed the lightning bolt that fell above her. Afterwards, came silence. Those who had lingered on finally fell dead and those who tried to stop her remained as ashes. The sky darkened as the clouds formed together and created a funnel that began to descend. Sakura could see the glowing yellow eyes that stared at her from within the confines of the cylindrical cloud formation. With all her might, Sakura leaped into the air and entered the womb of the dark funnel and prepared to do battle with the menace until the dream suddenly came to an end.

Sakura awoke rather startlingly in the hospital bed with Li by her side, gently running his hand over hers. She looked up and could see the worry on her fiancé's slightly cut face quickly go away.

"Li?" She whispered softly.

"Hey, angel." He kissed her gently on the forehead.

"What happened? I feel like I got hit by a train."

"Well… sort of. You got hit by the side of the plane."

Sakura just laughed and looked around. "Where's everyone else?"

"They made it out just fine. Eriol's in the next room with Tomoyo."

"My dad? Does he--"

"He knows. He and Sonomi are here. Unfortunately, so is the press."

"The press?"

"Yeah but I'm sure it's nothing we can't handle."

"Guess you're right. Maybe Aries can… oh, no. Aries. Where did--"

"I'm right here, card mistress." The alien suddenly appeared. "You need not worry about me."

"He came around and teleported before the ambulance arrived." Li explain with a smirk. "I swear, this guy's got more tricks up his sleeve than Kanaye."

"Kanaye." Sakura suddenly frowned. "How did he get that bomb on the plane?"

"I don't know."

"Mistress…" Aries continued. "We must focus on Exitir's arrival immediately. I fear things will only get worse the longer we procrastinate."

"Yeah, yeah." Li rolled his eyes. "So we've heard. Jesus, can't you see everyone's a little shaken up right now?"

"I apologize. But surely you must realize by now the damage Exitir's impending arrival is causing."

"What sort of damage?" Sakura asked.

"Observe."

By blinking his eyes, the television hanging in the room suddenly switched on and displayed the news. Sakura and Li watched the news coverage of all the strange weather patterns happening throughout Europe and the southern parts of the globe. Italy's growing destruction, the Antarctic's melting glaciers, Cairo's firestorm and reports of falling meteorites were all the topic of discussion.

"Wait a minute…" Sakura suddenly came to a realization. "…But I thought it was just…"

"It's no coincidence, Sakura." Aries shook his head. "These are all connected to the arrival of Exitir and his men. Time is running out."

Sakura paused for a moment. "…If we're going to take on Exitir, we're going to need some help. Get in touch with Pops and the others. They'll know where the rest of the army is."

"You mean your… _magic_ army?"

"Yes."

**The Pentagon**

"From what we've gathered so far," One of the technicians began as he spoke to the president. "This signal is indeed coming from outer space and is of unknown origin. Our analysts have ruled out involvement from the Soviets, Koreans or any other country with such capability. We're at a loss right now, sir."

"And you have no idea what this signal is intended for? Who or what it's trying to contact?"

"None whatsoever, sir."

"Armstrong?"

The general suddenly jumped up. "Yes, sir?"

"Get with the Secretary of Defense. If things get out of hand, there's no telling what kind of damage we'll be looking at. We need to be ready."

"Of course, sir."

**The Hinata Apartments**

"Just how did you come across this signal anyway?" Narusegawa asked as the hyperactive young girl continued analyzing the alien signal.

"Well, I was trying out some new equipment that would help me spy on you and Keitaro whenever you gave each other tongue-kisses when the signal came out of nowhere!" She explained casually.

"Aah!" Urashima ran his hands through his hair. "Why would you do that!? That's personal! Naru, tell her!"

"So can you make out what it's saying?" The young woman brushed it off.

"Nope." Kaolla shook her head as the rest of the apartment tenants walked in the room. "But I've got a suspicion."

"Oh, don't tell me you stayed up all night working on this thing…" Motoko shook her head.

"Uh-huh! And there may be a possibility this thing is interfacing with something already on the surface."

"Oh, really? You think?" A sarcastic Sara McDugal rolled her eyes. "Come on, Kaolla! Let's go play or something!"

"Not now, I'm onto something! Whatever this thing is trying to contact, it isn't from around here! Nope, no way! It's looking for something with a frequency similar to its own!"

"Well how do _you_ know that?" Naru asked.

"I don't! But I'm gonna have a lot of fun trying to crack this thing!"

"If it's looking for something with a similar frequency, then how come our machines are picking up on it?" Motoko questioned the girl. "That doesn't make any sense."

"It's called interference! Duh!" Kaolla kept her restless eyes on the computer screen.

"All right, I've had enough of this…" Keitaro said as he walked out of the room.

"Wait, where are you going?" His wife stopped him. "Keitaro? Where are you going?"

"I'm gonna go out back and find the fuse box."

"Why?"

"I'm gonna cut the power!"

"What!?"

"Oh, trust me! Kaolla can use a break from that damn thing!"

"But wait! She might be onto something here!"

"Don't tell me you actually believe her!"

"She's right, Keitaro." Motoko met with them. "I have a strange feeling about this too. Haven't you been watching the news? Strange weather patterns in Europe? What's to stop them from coming here, huh? I bet we're next and no one's even telling us. And this signal Kaolla's getting? Why do I get the feeling she isn't the only one who's picked up on this? I'm sure governments around the world are trying to crack this code right now."

"No…" Keitaro started to whine. "I don't believe in aliens!"

"Keitaro…"

"I don't! You hear me!? I don't! I don't! I don't! I do--"

_**WHACK!**_

Motoko's wooden practice blade was more than enough to subdue the frantic manager of the apartment building. Keitaro wobbled for a bit and fell into the arms of his loving wife.

"Okay…" He grumbled. "…Let's wait it out…"

**Elsewhere (Actually A Hidden Underground Laboratory)**

"Stupid, lousy, freaking machine!" A blond-haired young man screamed as he kicked his large computer station.

"What is it!?" His brown-haired companion came running inside the laboratory wielding a baseball bat. "Oh, it's just the computer. Still having trouble with it?"

"Well, what do _you_ think!? I'm just shouting for my health!?"

"Uhh… well… you want a sandwich?"

"No!"

"Okay, man. Just… calm down… okay? Just breath slowly…Yeah, that's it man… nice and easy… let your mind wander free and feel your inner chi start to flow…"

"Keiichiro, if you don't stop that hippie-ass talk I'm-a gonna--"

"Hey, there's somebody coming!" The man pointed out to the entrance of the lab as two metallic doors slid open.

Ichigo Momomiya walked inside the lab and poked her head around, searching for her old friends Ryou Shirogane and Keiichiro Akasaka. She noticed the large computer screen fizzing and its control panel popped open and the vast amounts of storage cases knocked around. After a few moments, the young woman was startled by a pitifully executed war cry belonging to Ryou and Keiichiro wielding a loaf of bread and a baseball bat respectively.

"Ryou! Keiichiro!" Ichigo caught her breath.

"Oh, it's just Ichigo." Keiichiro calmly dropped his bat.

"What the hell are you guys doing?"

"Uhh…" Ryou noticed his weapon and shyly put it away. "Nothing."

"I came to talk to you."

"About what?"

"Project Mew."

With a sigh, Ryou turned around and went back to his computer. "Go home, Ichigo."

"It's important."

"I already told you. The project's dead. There's no way in hell I'm gonna revive it. Not that I could, anyway…"

Ichigo approached the man and turned him around. "Are you honestly telling me that after all we've been through, everything you've discovered, all the secrets you've unlocked and all the strange genetic mysteries you've uncovered, there's no way the project can be brought back?"

"It's not a matter of the project itself, Ichigo. There are ways of jumpstarting your powers and abilities. Your DNA is and forever will be altered. I can't go back on that one for sure."

"Then what's the problem?"

"You know what the problem is, Ichigo. In order for Project Mew to be fully revived, all original members must be present."

"Why?"

"It's the only way the device will work."

"What device?"

Ryou then paused for a moment, trying to sway from the subject. "Ichigo, why do you feel the need to suit up again? It's over. Sakura and her team are well off by themselves."

"No…" She shook her head. "…Not for long. I'm sensing something I shouldn't be. There's something much bigger at work here. Not just demons and escaped convicts. Sakura probably knows already. And I intend to help her with or without the others."

Keiichiro nervously came between them and tried to ease the tension. "Look, Ryou… if Ichigo thinks something's up then maybe…"

"Yeah, yeah…" Ryou shut him up. "Okay, Ichigo. If it means that much to you."

A smile spread across the redhead's face. "Thank you. What do I have to do?"

"Just round up the girls and I'll see what I can do."

"No problem."

* * *

Later that day, everyone had regrouped at the Daidouji residence. Wounds had healed a lot sooner than expected but it was all the more better for the group to now focus on the situation at hand.

"The crash made today's headlines." Kaho said as she placed a newspaper on the coffee table. "I'm sure Kanaye is probably hiding somewhere."

"What puzzles me is how he knew to take the plane down." Sakura pondered aloud.

"I'm…" Sonomi started. "…I'm afraid I'm responsible for that."

"Mom?" Tomoyo nearly had a heart attack. "You helped Kanaye?"

"Not exactly." She then turned to Touya and Yukito. "Remember those investors I told you about? The ones who funded the whole thing?"

"No…" Touya came to a realization. "You mean Kanaye was the one who built this thing?"

"His company?" Yuki sighed. "I don't believe this."

"I'm sorry." The woman pleaded. "I didn't know. Neither of us did."

Li nodded. "Yeah. Obviously the whole thing was like a backup plan or something to kill Sakura in case the whole Genesis fiasco didn't work out."

"Complete with ionic pulse, no less." Eriol added. "He knew that would be enough to subdue us in case we tried to use our magic."

"All right, enough talking." Sakura said as she stood up. "Right now Aries is rounding up the magic army with Pops, Maya, Marvin and Suki. Our job now is to prepare ourselves from Exitir's arrival and at the same time, watch out for any of Faust's tricks."

"Oh, God." Meiling shook her head. "So many bad guys."

"Uh-huh. There's a good chance he might try to possess us again. But I'm not having it."

"No shit." Touya agreed. "I'm not going through _that_ again!"

"We've got one more stop to make before our army is officially complete."

"Where to?" Li asked.

"Texas."


	15. Discoveries All Around

_**A/N: Let's see if you can remember the character that'll pop up later on in this story… **_

**CHAPTER FIFTEEN**

The SWAT team kicked down the door and hurried inside Hiroshi Kanaye's penthouse, heavily armed and in desperate search for the former billionaire. After a brief scan of the area, the commanding officer spoke into his radio.

"He's not here." He said disappointingly. "The bastard must have known we were coming and took off."

"Understood." The other line radioed. "We're sending squad cars to be on the lookout."

While the SWAT captain continued speaking into his piece, one of the officers wandered off into the hallway and down the steps before noticing the old grandfather clock standing still and silent. He noticed the hands had stopped at 12:00 and that a light could be seen creaking slightly from behind.

"Sir?" The cop called out. "I think I found something!"

Moments later, after the team had forcibly removed the clock and broke down the magnetically sealed doorway, they found themselves wandering around the empty laboratory. All of Kanaye's weapons, suits and elixirs were no longer there but the captain had a suspicion that this was indeed the arsenal.

"He's on the run." The captain shook his head.

"Sir!" Another officer approached the man, holding a scale in his arms. "Bomb squad just diffused this thing. It was set to go off one minute after we set foot in here."

"Kanaye was expecting us all along."

"Yes, sir."

"What is this thing?"

"It's a scale, sir. From what we understand, it's used to weigh energy."

"Why is it at point zero one?"

"Excuse me, sir." The man fiddled with the scale's screen until a series of blips followed. "…Uh-oh."

"You stupid son of a--"

_**BOOOOOOOOOOM!!!**_

* * *

"So how are we planning on getting to Texas?" Meiling asked as she and the others followed Sonomi through the air hangar. 

"Yeah, our plane's dead." Nakuru nodded.

"Although the WarHawk is gone, we're not exactly screwed just yet." Sonomi said as she slid her card through a slot, opening a doorway. "What you're about to see is a prototype. We're not sure whether or not she's completely ready for travel."

As the lights flickered on, everyone was taken aback by the new high-tech jet that stood proudly above their heads. Its sleek design, dark blue coloring and infrared windows surpassed the WarHawk's look and its size was noticeably larger.

"Wow." Touya's jaw dropped. "That's one hell of a jet."

Sonomi proudly nodded. "Yes it is."

"I don't know." A doubtful Yukito shook his head. "How do we know Kanaye wasn't involved with this one?"

"He wasn't, I can assure you." Sonomi eased their minds. "I started working on this one a while back after you announced your retirement."

"Why?" Sakura asked.

"In case a situation like this were to occur and force you out of your so-called retirement."

"Well, it's a good thing we've got you on our side." Sakura grinned.

"Yup. Ladies… gentlemen… I give you the _Knight One_."

"So, I guess we should suit up?" Yukito turned but couldn't find Touya. "Touya? You there? Touya, where are you?"

"Yippee!" Touya exclaimed as he ran over to the jet, zipping up his jumpsuit.

Sakura smiled and turned to her friends. "Looks like time is on our side after all."

"Indeed." Aries nodded.

"Let's go."

**Pearl Harbor**

As the USS Nimitz set off to sea, several aircrafts flew straight above to wish them well. The captain of the naval carrier, Matthew Yelland, stood in the control room and watched the calm of the ocean until one of his men approached him.

"Captain?" The wing commander said.

"Yes, Douglas. What is it?"

"Sir, I've noticed our two transfers haven't arrived yet."

"Which ones?"

"The Japanese pilots who requested their detail here."

"What?" The captain then looked over the documents he was handed. "Kinomoto and Tsukishiro. Oh, our translators."

"Yes, sir. They're a day late and we've been unable to contact them. And I can see we're already heading out."

"Yes, I'm aware of that as well." The captain then started to head out. "Come with me, will you?"

"Of course, sir." He followed him down the corridors of the ship.

"Douglas, let me ask you something. You ever deal with a celebrity? Huh? Ever met one?"

"No, sir."

"Neither have I. And these two pilots we're supposed to be getting happen to be a pair of celebrities in their own right."

"Sir?"

"Oh, you've probably heard of them. There's a girl in Japan who can summon magic and has a team of trained fighters and magicians at her disposal. These two, Yukito Tsukishiro and Touya Kinomoto, happen to be her own personal pilots. As a matter of fact, this Kinomoto guy happens to be her brother."

"Oh, you mean Sakura Kinomoto." The commander nodded, finally realizing. "She led that group of people back on Alcatraz."

"Alcatraz, yes. That's right. Cut to three months later when she stopped a rampaging lunatic, who demolished almost half of Tokyo. The cost of saving all those people was her life."

"Yes but wasn't she found to be alive six months later?"

"Sure was. Reports claimed she was brought back to life by Hiroshi Kanaye, some Japanese scientist and industrialist. Said he used a special serum that replenished life and rejuvenated body cells."

"That's right and they also mentioned he kept her locked up and hidden from the public so she couldn't interfere during their crime wave. Said she was also brainwashed."

"But somehow she regained her memory and broke free, kicking all sorts of ass again. Few years pass and they all decide to retire and take up new hobbies. For Yukito and Touya, it was joining the academy."

"Yes, I understand now. But what does it have to do with our two pilots exactly?"

"Nothing, really. I'd just figure if they're late, it's for a damn good reason. No need to worry about two missing pilots, Commander. There'll be others."

"Yes, sir."

"Captain!" One of the officers called out from atop a deck. "You might want to see this!"

"What is it?" The captain looked up.

"You wouldn't believe me if I told you, sir."

**The Pentagon**

"We got one, sir!" One of the analysts exclaimed as he approached the general with a portfolio.

"One what?" General Armstrong asked.

"Proof of the approaching anomaly!"

"What? Where?"

"Off the coast of Pearl Harbor, sir. The USS Nimitz just uncovered something from the ocean and are awaiting instructions on what to do with it."

"It's probably nothing. Just some kind of sea trash."

"No, sir. I'm inclined to believe they've actually got something here."

"All right. Let me speak with the captain of the vessel."

"Captain Yelland, sir. He's on the other line."

"Captain who?"

"Come with me."

**Virgil, Texas**

A large congregation gathered inside the Baptist church and among them were Sakura, Li and Tomoyo. As they sat down, they recognized the gray-haired preacher standing in the back with a small group of people who were waiting for the mass to start.

"There he is." Sakura smiled. "Back there with those other people."

"Oh, yeah." Li looked back. "I see him."

Preacher Jimmy Craig Corin spoke with a couple of his fellow servants of God, one of whom was crying his eyes out.

"Oh, it's just horrible Jim!" The pastor sobbed. "I can't believe a good man like Reverend Cleophus died so soon!"

"There, there." The preacher man said comfortingly. "It's all right. He's in a better place now."

"Oh, you don't get it! He could have been pope, Jim! Pope!" He then started shaking his fist heavenward furiously. "Damn you, you bastard! Damn you!"

"Whoa, now that is enough!" Jimmy grabbed hold of the man's fist. "For God's sake, Tom, the Pope's Catholic! Cleophus was a Baptist!"

"Oh. Well, wait, what are we?"

"Baptist!"

"Oh, yeah."

"Oh, go sit down. I'm about to go on."

"Okay…"

As the church band revved up their instruments and played a melodious harmony, the preacher in the white suit took his place on the stage and was greeted with thunderous applause. Speaking into his microphone, the preacher warmed up with an opening prayer and finally kicked back to deliver his sermon.

"The world is a fickle place, my friends." He started. "Untrustworthy, indecisive and unreliable. As humans, it's only natural to change our personalities because of personal experiences that may have affected us. But in God's eyes, if we don't make the change for the better, he will never be able to help you. For God to help you, you must first help yourself!"

"Do we really have to sit through all this?" Li whispered to Sakura.

"Meh." She shrugged.

The band then started to go into an upbeat tempo, complete with electric guitar and choir standing in the back. The churchgoers stood up and swayed with the music as the preacher began to break into song.

_§ I turn on the tube and what do I see?_

_A whole lotta people crying 'don't blame me'._

_They point their crooked little fingers at everybody else._

_Spend all their time feelin' sorry for themselves._

_Victim of this, victim of that._

Your momma's too thin and your daddy's too fat.

_Get over it!_

_All this whinin' and cryin' and pitchin' a fit._

_Get over it! Get over it! §_

As the music picked up speed, everyone started to dance around much to Sakura's, Li's and Tomoyo's expectation. With a shrug, the three exchanged glances and stood up to join in on the act.

"Well…" Sakura said. "At least we know he's still got it in him."

"But can we assume he'll be willing to join us again?" Tomoyo asked.

"If not, we'll just kidnap him again!"

§ _You say you haven't been the same since you had your little crash._

_Let's kill all the lawyers, kill 'em tonight._

_You don't want to work, you want to live like a king._

_Get over it!_

_If you don't want to play, then you might as well split._

_Get over it! Get over it! §_

"I think maybe we should start heading up front." Sakura suggested.

Tomoyo and Li nodded as they followed her through a group of dancing congregators and headed down the aisles.

"Ugh." Li shuddered. "And to think we were dancing along with them last time."

"What do we do after the sermon, Sakura?" Tomoyo asked. "Same as last time." She answered. "We sit through it and hope we don't fall asleep."

After going through the crowds of people and doing his faith healing tricks during the musical interlude, Jimmy returned to the stage to finish the rest of the song. Meanwhile, Sakura and her friends sat patiently at the front row.

_§ You're makin' the most of your losin' streak._

_Some call it sick, but I call it weak._

_You wallow in the guilt; you wallow in the pain._

_You wave it like a flag, you wear it like a crown._

_Got your mind in the gutter, bringin' everybody down._

_Complain about the present and blame it on the past._

I'd like to find your inner child and kick its little ass!

_Get over it!_

All this bitchin' and moanin' and pitchin' a fit.

Get over it! Get over it!

_Get over it!_

_It's gotta stop sometime, so why don't you quit?_

_Get over it! Get over it! § _

As the song died down, Jimmy returned to the podium and waited for his congregation to take their seats. Once all the adrenaline had left their bodies, the preacher man managed to go on and finish the rest of his sermon.

"Amen, everybody?" He spoke through the microphone.

"Amen!" Everyone replied.

Sakura looked at her watch and realized she didn't have time to sit through mass after all and took out a card from her bag.

"What are you doing?" Li asked.

"We've got to fast forward." She said, activating the card. "Time!"


	16. Undercover Bust

**CHAPTER SIXTEEN**

After jumping ahead one hour, Sakura and her friends got up from their seats and followed the congregation out of the building. Jimmy was outside, shaking hands with the public until he noticed a group of familiar faces approach him.

"Now do my eyes deceive me or is that Sakura Kinomoto and friends payin' me another visit?" He smiled as he opened his arms.

"Hi, Jimmy." Sakura gladly gave the man a hug.

"Mercy saints alive, how long has it been?"

"Six, seven years maybe?"

"Last I heard, you were dead. Matter of fact, it was me doin' all the tlakin' at yer funeral! What happened?"

"I got better."

"So I see." He then shook Li's hand. "How ya doing, son?"

"Good, thanks." He replied.

"It's good to see you again, Jimmy." Tomoyo smiled.

"You too, little lady!" The preacher started to head back inside, motioning his old friends to follow. "Now why don't you folks follow me and we'll catch up?"

"Well, actually--"

"Say, you know my cousin ended up buying out that Hiroshi Kanaye feller's company in Japan?"

"Your cousin is Earl Culver?"

"Sure is!"

"What, is everybody in Texas related?"

"Hey, hey, hey! Don't you ever badmouth the good name of Texas in my presence, understand?"

"Oh. Sorry."

"Besides, you're thinking of Arkansas. Not Texas."

"Gotcha."

"Jimmy, I'm afraid we didn't come for a social visit." Sakura started.

"Huh? What's that?" The old man turned around.

"There's been an incident. Well, _more_ than one incident. In fact, there's a whole bunch of incidents that haven't occurred yet but are on their way to happening as we speak."

"What are you talking about?"

"Mr. Graham reassembled the magic army and they're all waiting in Tokyo. Waiting for _us_."

"The magic army? Why would James do that?"

"Faust is back."

The preacher man's eyes widened with fear as he took a few steps back. "Now listen here, little lady…"

"Jimmy…" Sakura tried to reassure the man but was interrupted.

"No way. Nuh-uh! I ain't going back there!"

"We need you! There might be more possessions!"

"I thought you killed that rascal Faust!"

"I did! But his followers found a way to bring him back!"

"Why me? Why don't you get those other two fellas, Pops and Marvin to help ya?"

"We already did." Li said. "In fact, they were the first ones to arrive."

"Oh, Lord… Well, why didn't James tell me anything about this?"

"He's dead." Sakura frowned. "Faust killed him."

"Mr. Graham is dead?" The news came as a shock to Corin. "I… I don't believe this… well, what's this other incident you mentioned?"

"The Demon Knights have returned."

"Demon Knights. Them things that damaged Tokyo a while back. The ones that… killed you."

"They didn't kill me. Their leader, the Black Knight, did. And he's back, too."

"And you say the entire army's waiting?"

"Yes."

Jimmy chuckled as he placed his bible in his coat pocket and tightened his monogrammed JCC cufflinks before looking up at Sakura and friends.

"Well…" He shrugged. "What are we waiting for? Let's go do this thing."

"Actually, you can pack this time. We brought a plane."

"What?"

"And we'd better head out now." Li suggested. "I'm sure it's already getting dark back home."

**Tomoeda**

Inside a dark parking garage, a blue 67 Shelby Mustang Cobra remained tucked away between two bigger and more modern vehicles. The two inhabitants of the GT500 sat around and waited patiently.

"Oh, it's been two hours, Rally!" The young blond woman groaned. "Can't we leave?"

"No!" Snapped the older, dark-haired woman. "We're not leaving until we bust him."

"But he might not even show up!"

"Listen, May… Becky told me he was heading on the first flight to Japan, all right? This is the exact address written on that napkin we found outside the bar."

"But we've been tracking him all week! Who's to say he didn't run away during that jailbreak that just happened?"

"Oh, he's here all right." Rally Vincent grinned. "He wouldn't leave so soon just when business was booming."

"Yeah, but who comes to Japan for drug running?"

"You'd be surprised, May." She then noticed a shadowy figure approaching the lot. "Shh! I think he's coming."

"Are you sure?"

"No but we can't take any chances, can we? Now do you remember your lines?"

"Of course I do!" The zealous young woman stuck her tongue out as she zipped up a red coat and put on a fake curly brown wig. "Here I go…"

"Be careful."

May stepped out of the car and approached the figure until it suddenly turned into three. The young woman realized the man they were looking for didn't come alone and was probably armed and ready for anything. Rally, of course, came prepared too as she kept her hand inside her coat pocket and stroked her beloved CZ-75.

"Come on, May. You can do this." Rally whispered to herself.

"You alone?" The figure in the middle asked in a gruff voice.

"Nah. Had to bring my stupid roommate wit me." May responded with a typical Brooklyn accent. "She's inta the kinda stuff youse guys do, ya know?"

"Why did you tell her?"

"Hey, it jus sorta slipped out! What can I do? Now am I in or out?"

"Leave her out of this and we'll talk again tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? Nah, I can't do dat! Y'see, I'm sorta gonna skip town tomorrow on accounta I kinda quit my job today. I was hopin' you were gonna let me in on dis smugglin' ring o' yours and see if I can make a profit somewhere else! I mean, what else am I supposed to do? Pole dance? Nuh-uh! Not me! Ya see dese boobs? These ain't no lady boobs! They's man boobs! I can't make a fortune offa man boobs! C'mere, feel 'em!"

"No!"

"Sorry. Say, you're kinda cute. I'm sure ya beat the ladies off wit a stick. Oh, what am I sayin'? A-course ya do! Haha! It comes wit the turf, don't it! I mean, smugglin', extortin', cappin', snappin', whackin'--"

"Quiet!" The man shushed as he turned to his bodyguards. "Dear God, you talk a lot! I have no use for talkative people! And what's more, I don't like the idea of my employees bailing out on me."

"I ain't bailing out on youse! I'm just gonna go check out some other parts of town, y'know? See if I can get some business goin' or somethin'."

"How do I know you're not lying?"

"Hey, you don't! I jus figure ya gotta trust me, know what I'm sayin'?"

"I don't normally hire young children like you to do this sort of work."

"I ain't no kid! So we can jus establish dat right now!"

"Well what makes you think you're ready for something like this?"

"You ever been to Brooklyn? Huh? Harlem, maybe? I been on the streets! I know what it's like! Big, bad Japan ain't no different!"

"Excuse me for a moment." Said the man as he turned to his two men.

For a moment, they began to whisper amongst themselves as a nervous May stood around constantly looking back at the blue Mustang. After a while, the man walked up to May and took out a small brown package from his coat pocket.

"Here." He said, handing over the small box. "There's at least 5 grand's worth. See how much you can get for it, _without _lowering its value."

"Oh, yeah!" An excited May clapped her hands and took the box. "See, that's what I'm talkin' about! Yeah, all right! Cool, cool… so, what? Do I call you or do ya wanna meet here again?"

"No need. I'll find you."

"Yeah, all right."

"Oh, one last thing."

"Yeah?"

"Did you get everything you need on tape?"

"Oh, sure. Thanks for opening up, I didn't think you guys would buy that whole routine because--" May then realized she broke out of character and slowly stared up at the drug-runner, who already had his gun pointed at her.

"I knew there was something familiar about you." The man cocked his pistol.

"Was it my boobs?"

Soon, the other two men took out their guns and readied to fire them as well. But before they could, two gunshots came from the dark and disarmed them. At that moment, May ducked and swept the drug-runner off his feet, causing him to drop his weapon.

"Freeze!" Rally cried as she approached them with her gun smoking from the barrel.

"Damn it!" The man grabbed May by the neck and took out another gun.

"Brian Tochi, you're under arrest."

"You're not a cop."

"Maybe not but I'm sure as hell gonna collect that reward! Now let go of my partner, huh?"

"No way. First, you back off."

"Brian, I've got a clear shot of your head…" Rally responded in a sing-song voice.

"Yeah, well I've got a clear shot of this bitch's head, too."

"Rally!" May started to cry. "Just shoot him!"

"Yeah, Rally. Just shoot me!"

Rally kept her aim pointed at Tochi's head until the two other men charged into her and knocked her away. With a clear getaway, Tochi let go of May and ran inside his car with his men.

"May!" Rally helped the girl up. "Are you okay?"

"No, I'm not okay! I just had a gun pointed to my head!"

"Come on, they're getting away!"

The Gunsmith Cats hurried inside the blue Cobra and took off instantly. In a matter of seconds, they were able to catch up to Tochi's black Lincoln and chased him around the curves of the garage. With quick-thinking, the drug runner made a sharp turn and drove through the exit gates, hoping to evade the two women. No such luck, however, as Rally's expertise allowed them to cut them off near the parkway. Startled by their sudden reappearance, the black Lincoln swerved further into the street and ran into a nearby tow truck.

"Now we've got 'em!" Rally exclaimed as she got out of her car, which was a few yards away. "All right, punks! Put your hands in the air where I can see them!"

"Yeah!" May said as she took out one of her grenades. "This ought to bring 'em out!"

As May tossed her grenade, a powerful force suddenly came down on the black vehicle and caused the entire section of the street to explode. Onlookers stopped what they were doing and watched the fire build up as the debris slowly fell to the floor.

"Oh, my baby!" A panicky Rally stroked her car lovingly. "Are you okay? Oh, thank God. She's fine, May!"

"Yeah…" May dusted herself off. "So am I, thanks."

Rally looked at the enormous crater, where Tochi was and dropped her jaw in shock and disbelief. "Well… there goes our paycheck."

"That was weird."

"Yeah. What the hell was that?"

"I don't know."

"May, that wasn't…"

"What?" She then noticed the empty pin in her hand. "Oh, God no! That wasn't my grenade! I used one of my specialties! There's no way it could have done all that!"

"Then how did it happen? I mean, it's not like it came from the sky or anything!"

"Oh, yeah? You wanna bet?" May looked up.

"Huh?"

Rally looked up and noticed a strange, gray cloud beginning to form in the night sky. The moon was slowly coming out of view and traffic was immediately coming to a stop.

"Oh, Christ." Rally groaned. "Please tell me it isn't about to rain."

"I don't like the looks of this!" May started to panic. "That's no rain cloud!"

"Then what is it?"

* * *

Meanwhile, the Knight One zoomed its way through the night sky until it approached the dark clouds that hovered above Tomoeda. As the plane slowed its course, Touya and Yukito suspiciously looked at their radar screen while Sakura and friends looked out the windows. 

"What the hell?" Touya stared at the enormous cloud mass. "Those clouds are above Tomoeda."

"Yeah." Sakura nodded. "Which means we may already be too late."


	17. Setting The Stage

**CHAPTER SEVENTEEN**

Inside Tokyo Tower, Sonomi and a handful of assistants walked along the special observatory deck while the magic army stood around, waiting. Marvin held Maya close as they stared out at the scenery while Pops stood alone in a corner, thinking to himself.

"It's so beautiful." Maya awed at the city lights.

"It beats Jersey." Marvin nodded.

"Why did we change our location?" Suki asked Sonomi, who walked up to her.

"Sakura mentioned a dark cloud forming over Tomoeda." The woman explained. "She said it'll come over here in no time but for us to be ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Exitir." Aries entered the room. "They Valdorians are already approaching."

"What!?" Meiling suddenly appeared from the group, holding the timer-probe. "But this thing still has a good four hours left on it!"

"Either way, we're still running out of time."

"What do we do?" One of the magicians asked. "Sakura hasn't arrived yet."

"Yeah!" Said another. "We can't possibly win without her."

"Oh, sure you can!" Sakura said as the elevator doors opened. "It'll just take a bit longer."

"Sakura!" Bowed another magician.

"Hey, how are ya? Aries?"

"They are indeed arriving, mistress." The alien bowed his head. "We must act now."

"Oh, yeah? What'd you have in mind?"

"We must prepare for their arrival. In doing so, we can anticipate the exact moment when we find a weakness in Exitir's defenses."

"And when we find one, we can execute our plan."

"Yes."

"Good idea. If these guys are serious, we'll need to evacuate the city. Countries all over the world are going to be doing the same thing sooner or later, so we might as well get a head start now."

"But I thought we still had time." Li turned to Meiling.

"Hey! This thing's retarded!" Meiling held up the probe, which had now reached a minute under four hours. "It's counting down to something but it's sure as hell not their arrival!"

Sakura looked out the window and up at the cloud formation. "Maybe it is, Meiling. Maybe… it takes a while for them to enter our atmosphere."

"That is not the case, Sakura." Aries shook his head. "If my people intend to invade, they will waste no time in doing so. However, since I cannot account for the probe's purpose, I can only assume they will attack once the timer runs out."

"Oh. Well that makes me feel _real _safe!" Sakura said sarcastically.

Just then, Jimmy, Touya and Yukito entered the room and were taken aback by the several hundred people standing around.

"Whoa." Touya's eyes widened.

"Lord have mercy!" Jimmy dabbed the sweat from his brow. "It's that bad, huh?"

"It's about to get even worse, Jimbo." Nakuru grinned. "Kind of makes you feel excited, doesn't it?"

"Oh, Lord…"

Sakura walked past several members of her army and gave them a heads up, indicating the time had come for them to ready for battle. She stood in the middle of the room and spoke loudly and clearly.

"Okay, everybody! Suit up and get ready!" She ordered. "Do whatever you have to! We've got to set up a block around the city before this thing gets here! Now let's move!"

As everyone headed out to prepare for the arrival, Li, Tomoyo and Eriol pulled Sakura aside. They all exchanged worried glances then turned their attention to their leader.

"What about Faust, Sakura?" Li asked. "What if he comes back?"

"I don't know." She shrugged. "Eriol?"

"There's a chance he might still be recovering." The young man said. "And if not, he'll still need to open the Demon Realm for recruits. That could take some time."

"That'll work." Sakura sighed. "Oh well. Let's just hope, if he comes looking for trouble, he'll find it with this Exitir guy."

* * *

"What are we doing here?" Pudding Fong asked as she wandered around the dimly lit lab. "Are we throwing another surprise party?"

"I don't think so." Lettuce Midorikawa shook her head. "Ichigo said it was something important."

"Yeah, they're only important when it's _my_ birthday." Mint Aizawa joked. "Or when it's Zakuro's. Right?"

"Whatever." Zakuro Fujiwara simply responded. "Where _is_ Ichigo, anyway?"

"I'm here." The redhead appeared from the opening doors. "Thanks for coming."

"All right, Momomiya, what's so important that it couldn't wait?" Mint demanded to know.

"As if you didn't know."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Uh, hello? Strange weather patterns? Some kind of mixed signal that's jamming several earth frequencies? Unusual activity coming from the stars? Sound familiar to you guys?"

"Not really." Pudding spun around on a chair. "Might have seen it in a movie once, though."

"It's an alien signal. It's trying to make contact with Earth."

"How do you know all this?" Lettuce curiously asked.

"Because we just found out about it now." Ryou entered the lab, holding a folder in his hand. "And if Ichigo is right, then these things intend on hurting us."

"Do you think it's… _them_?"

"I don't think so, Lettuce." Zakuro spoke up. "I saw some of the damage that's been done on the news. I don't think they'd do anything that would destroy the planet's environment. The people, maybe. But not the planet itself."

"Oh no."

"So the bad guys are coming, huh?" Mint scoffed. "So what? It's not like we can transform and start fighting again. Those days are over."

"Not quite." Ichigo interrupted. "Ryou's been working on something that can jumpstart our powers."

"Really?" Pudding started to jab the young man. "What is it? I wanna see it!"

"Hold on! I need a commitment from all of you!" Ryou flung Pudding from off his back. "If I'm going to do this, I need everyone's participation. Otherwise, it won't work."

"I'm in!" Pudding jumped in the air.

"Well…" Lettuce fiddled with her hair for a bit. "…I don't know."

"Aw, come on!" Pudding tightly embraced the shy girl. "Come on! Come on! Please!?"

"All right."

"Yeah!"

"Mint?" Ichigo turned to her friend. "You in?"

"What? And miss out on the annual family reunion? Of course I'll do it!" Mint said with a wink. "How 'bout you, Zakuro?"

"I'm sorry." The model headed for the exit. "But I just can't."

"What?"

"Zakuro!" Ichigo ran up to her. "Don't do this. We need you."

"For what? Saving the world so they can forget about us again? I have better things to do."

"They haven't forgotten about us. They just haven't _needed_ us, is all. And now they do."

"For now, you mean."

"It's not going to be like last time, Zakuro."

"Let Sakura and her team handle it."

"She can't do this alone."

"Of course she can. She came back from the dead, for Christ's sake."

"Look!" Ichigo stressfully sighed. "Something big is about to happen. I don't know what, exactly. But I can feel it. For some strange reason, I can actually _feel _it. And I know deep down, you can too." She then stared at her friends. "_All _of you can."

"She's right." Mint nodded. "I haven't felt this way in a long time. Ever since I heard about that incident in Italy, my mind's been wandering. My heart's been pounding and my instincts have been telling me I need to suit up again."

"You see?" Ichigo urged her friend some more. "I need you, Zakuro. We all do."

For a moment, Zakuro was silent. She thought to herself and examined the sincerity of her old friends' faces. Then, with a grin, the violet-eyed woman nodded. "All right… all right, count me in."

"Yes!" Pudding and Lettuce high-fived each other.

"It's so beautiful, isn't it?" A tearful Keiichiro suddenly appeared, Kleenex in hand.

"Shut up." Ryou rolled his eyes. "All right, girls. Let's get to work!"

**The Pentagon**

General Armstrong sat at his desk and nodded along to every detail Captain Yelland told him over the phone while the other officials frantically scurried about.

"Yes, so you say it's egg-shaped?" Armstrong asked via speakerphone.

"Oh, yeah." The captain of the Nimitz nodded on the other line. "Bigger than an egg, though. About maybe 2, 2 ½ ft. high. Weighs about 35 to 45 pounds."

"And you said this thing opened up by itself?"

"Yes, sir. And if I'm not mistaken, this thing is counting down to something."

"How do you know?"

"There appears to be a set of characters slowly changing every minute. They're displayed on a digital lens, much like a normal timer, but I can't make head or tail of what they say. I'm only assuming they're numbers of some sort."

"Edison?" The general looked over as the major approached him.

"It checks out, sir." The major said out of breath. "Intelligence reports several meteor showers throughout the globe, producing egg-shaped orbs sunk into the ground. However, these are a lot smaller. About the size of a football, maybe. No counters reported."

"I'd say the one I have is special." Captain Yelland concluded. "And if I'm right, there's only a few of them somewhere out there."

"You may be onto something." Armstrong nodded. "Edison, I want you to get with the Secretary of Defense. Ask him what he wants us to do now."

"Yes, sir." Edison nodded as he left the room.

"General…" Yelland continued over the phone. "How do you know what we're dealing with is actually from another world?"

"I don't." Armstrong shook his head. "But by God, we've got to be ready."

**The Hinata Apartments**

"Kaolla, let's go!" Keitaro frantically hurried everyone out the door.

"Hold on!" The exchange student pleaded. "Let me synchronize the signal with my laptop!"

"You can do that in the van! Seta! We good to go?"

"Yeah, yeah." Professor Noriyasu Seta nodded as he lit up a cigarette. "Just hurry up. I don't want to run into traffic."

"I'll do the roll call." Keitaro's aunt Haruka said as she poked her head in the van and read down a clipboard. "All right, answer when I call your name."

"What, are we in school now!?" Sara impatiently growled. "C'mon!"

"So that means Sara's here." Haruka checked the list. "Naru?"

"Here."

"Motoko?"

"Here, Haruka."

"Keitaro?"

"I'm here! Let's go!"

"Shut up. Shinobu?"

"I'm here."

"Kitsune?"

"Here and drunk!"

"I'm not surprised. Mutsumi? Uhh… Mutsumi Otohime, where are you?"

There was a long and uncomfortable silence as everyone looked around for their missing companion. Suddenly, Kaolla noticed her brown-haired friend lying motionless underneath a set of coats.

"Oh, my God!" Kaolla screamed. "She's dead!"

"Huh? Who's dead?" Mutsumi suddenly awoke with a loud snort. "What's going on? We there yet?"

"Never mind." Haruka shook her head. "Su, I can see you. And Seta's--"

"In the car, starting the engine!" The professor exclaimed as he entered the vehicle and did just that. "Everyone take one last look at your home! It may not be there when we get back!"

"You'd better be right about this, Su." Sara gave her a dirty look.

"Trust me." She assured them. "You'll thank me later."

**Back in Tomoeda**

Rally and May sat in the Mustang and watched as the fire department put out the flames from their recent encounter. Police cars and news reporters followed soon after but most of the onlookers kept their attention skyward.

"I don't like the look of those clouds, Rally." May shuddered. "There's something about them that doesn't seem right."

"You're just being paranoid as usual." Rally scoffed. "What I want to know is how the hell that car blew up so unexpectedly."

"It had something to do with those clouds, I bet ya."

"No, it didn't." She rolled her eyes. "Well, there's no point in sitting around for nothing. I say we catch the first plane back to Chicago."

"Maybe we should wait for the clouds to settle."

"Would you forget about the clouds!?"

Just then, the wind began to pick up and stir the area with fear. Flashes of light could be see emanating from the clouds again as several dark figures began to lower themselves to the ground. As some people ran, others stuck around and took photographs while several more stood in place, too afraid to move. The damage being inflicted on the city was coming from a familiar group of multicolored flaming skeletons in armor. Even worse was the person leading them. A man they all thought to have been dead for years but was in fact levitating in the air, destroying parts of the city with his various fire and electrical attacks.

"Tomoeda." Faust grinned at the horrified citizens. "Did you miss us?"

"What now, Lord Faust?" Aram Fingle suddenly materialized, his wand at the ready.

"Now? We lure them out to play."

As the Demon Knights and the Blood Ring priests indulged themselves, the people that were targeted fled almost immediately. Close by, Rally and May watched the horror unfold and could stand no more.

"Well, if this isn't the craziest thing I've ever seen." Rally said as she loaded her gun.

"Looks like we found ourselves another case to work on!" May exclaimed as she exited the car, throwing her bag of explosives over her shoulder.


	18. The Gunsmith Cats Ride Again!

**CHAPTER EIGHTEEN**

For the residents of the Hinata Apartments, rush hour came a little sooner than expected. There they were, all ten of them, cramped inside Seta's smelly old van and Kaolla constantly annoying them with this so-called "alien signal" synchronizing with her laptop computer.

"Come on, move it!" Seta honked his horn. "Kaolla, I swear I'll wring your tiny little neck if you're wrong about this!"

"I'm not!" She stuck her tongue out. "I'm 99.9 percent positive it'll happen!"

"But how?" Motoko shook her head. "It doesn't make any sense."

"Yes, it does! You just have to be an imaginative computer genius like myself to fully grasp the concept!"

"What's the holdup!?" Seta continued shouting from inside his vehicle.

"Anyone else get the feeling something's not right?" Keitaro started to panic.

"You mean besides the unusual weather, dark clouds, alien signal and recent prison break in Tokyo?" Naru sarcastically asked. "Nope. Everything seems all right to me!"

A distant explosion rattled the traffic slightly, causing the Hinata members to start panicking. A sudden jolt ran through Motoko's body, alarming her for some reason. She opened the door to the van and stepped out, eventually walking along the huddled vehicles to get a better look at what was going on.

"Motoko, get back here!" Naru called out to her. "Motoko!"

"She ain't gonna listen." Kitsune yawned. "She never does. Just relax and wait it out. That's what I'm doing!"

"Maybe she just went to stretch her legs." Shinobu shyly suggested.

"Yeah, or maybe she's gonna beat the crap outta whoever's causing the holdup!" Sara exclaimed. "All right! Go get 'em, Motoko!"

A smoky blue aura filled the air as more and more explosions were heard. Cars were tossed across the street as the Blue Knight rattled the area with his sword. Motoko looked up at the Demon Knight and gasped at the horror it was causing. Several people in their cars suddenly exited and attempted to head back on foot, hoping they wouldn't become the demons' next target.

"It's a demon." Motoko whispered to herself. "This doesn't make any sense."

* * *

Inside Tokyo Tower, Sakura and her friends stood at a nearby table with a map of the city while the entire army huddled around them.

"All right." Sakura pointed at the map. "If Aries is right, then they'll most likely encompass the entire city. We need to protect every major exit from the city and escort those who are heading for safety. The rest of us will try to keep them maintained at the heart of Tokyo. Let them know it's _me_ they want to talk to."

"Exitir is unpredictable, mistress." Aries said. "But if I know him, he will not stand down from a challenge. Especially one that is made from someone he would consider harmless."

"What, 'cause I'm a girl? Huh? Is that it?"

"I did not say that, mistress."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just yanking your chain." She giggled. "Okay, everybody. I know we haven't seen each other in a while. I know we haven't had much time to train. But remember that the world is counting on us again. We can't let them down. We can't let Mr. Graham down."

The various magicians exchanged glances and nodded, signaling their allegiance to the young woman. Just then, Jimmy, Pops and Sonomi hurried into the room with worried looks on their faces.

"Sakura!" Sonomi cried. "We've got trouble."

"What? Where?" Sakura turned to Pops.

"It's bad. Tomoeda's under attack." The African said out of breath.

"The Valdorians?"

"Nah." Jimmy shook his head. "From Faust."

"Faust, huh?" Sakura grinned mischievously. "Looks like we have to make a little detour."

As everyone started to exit the building, Meiling lagged behind as she eyeballed the timer probe, which was rapidly counting down the seconds. She couldn't understand the hieroglyphics winding down like a counter but she knew time was short.

"Just what exactly are you counting down to?" She asked no one in particular.

**The USS Nimitz - **

**Current Location: North of the Pacific Ocean Near Hawaii**

A military chopper hovered above the aircraft carrier and landed in its designated area. General Armstrong and a few men from the Pentagon exited the helicopter and were immediately greeted by Captain Yelland and his crew.

"General Armstrong?" The captain saluted then shook the man's hand. "I'm Captain Yelland. We met on the phone."

"Yes, I know." Armstrong nodded, trying to speak over the sound of the propellers. "Can we speak somewhere a bit more quiet?"

"Yes, of course. Follow me, please."

The two men walked along the corridors of the ship as crew members followed slowly behind. Yelland led the way over to a lower deck of the ship, where they began passing through engineering.

"Sorry for the detour, sir." Yelland apologized. "We've been a little busy lately. Two of our transfers failed to arrive today."

"I'll get to the point, Yelland." Armstrong changed the subject. "We have reason to believe that this probe you found may be from another world."

"Yes, sir. You told me."

"Right. And if our suspicions are correct, then there is indeed another one somewhere on this planet, trying to communicate to a higher source. Their reasons are unclear at the moment but right now the Secretary of Defense has placed the country on high alert. If these so-called 'aliens' happen to reveal themselves to us, the President has been authorized to address the American public."

"We'll be ready for anything, sir."

"One more thing. There's a storm coming."

"Radar didn't pick anything up."

"Not yet, they haven't. The boys down at the Pentagon have already seen the damage these strange weather patterns have caused. I'm sure by now you already know about the destruction in Italy."

"Most unfortunate, sir."

"Well, it's not over yet. We expect the storm to spread and arrive in our continent in the next few hours."

"But there's not a cloud in sight, sir."

"There will be."

**Back in Tokyo - Beneath Café Mew Mew**

"Everybody good to go?" Ryou asked as he entered another part of the lab.

Ichigo, Mint, Pudding, Lettuce and Zakuro exchanged glances and nodded as they remained clamped to the walls of a round, white room. Pressing a few buttons on a keyboard, Keiichiro activated a slot on the ceiling to open up and reveal a long, slender prod with a medium-sized black ball at the tip. The rod turned a few degrees and finally pointed straight at the five women as Keiichiro turned the machine on.

"What is this, exactly?" A nervous Ichigo asked.

"It's my Harmonic Inducer." Ryou replied. "This thing will rejuvenate your altered DNA cells and help you regain your powers and abilities. Since you guys are stronger working together as a team rather than separately, the rays you absorb from this thing will help better the chances of you guys actually kicking some ass."

"Oh."

"Got it?"

"Sock it to me, baby!"

"Now, Keiichiro!"

"Whoa, mama!" Keiichiro exclaimed as he activated the prod's rays.

In a matter of seconds, the entire room was filled with a bright blue energy. The girls could feel their insides being tampered with and screamed with all their might, trying to get through it.

"Oh, did I mention it was gonna hurt like hell?" Ryou sweat-dropped.

"RYOU!!!" Ichigo yelled. "YOU…. BASTARD!!!!"

"My bad, y'all."

* * *

The streets of Tomoeda continued to be ravaged by Faust and his minions of evil. The Blood Ring and Demon Knights spared no one in their sight as Faust and Lorca overlooked the damage being done.

"You're sure about this?" Lorca turned to his ancestor.

"She'll show up." Faust grinned. "I know she will."

Nearby, Rally and May took cover behind the blue Mustang as more and more people fled. An explosion near the curb of the street caused May to panic and get up to run but Rally immediately forced her partner down.

"Sit down, May!" Rally growled as she loaded her weapon.

"Do you not see all that!?" May poked her head out. "Rally! This is _way _beyond our normal call of duty! Okay? We're not experts on the supernatural! We're bounty hunters! That's all!"

"I know!"

"Then why the hell are we--"

"Because! We've got to do _something_!"

And with that, a confused and almost terrified Rally leapt from behind her car and started shooting down several Blood Ring priests. Faust noticed this and was stumped from the human's reaction.

"Who is that woman?" He asked.

"I don't know." Lorca shook his head. "She doesn't seem to have any magical ability."

"Kill her."

Lorca nodded and slowly approached the dark haired woman. Rally noticed him coming her way, wearing the newly furnished Sangria Gauntlet over his right arm and pointed her gun at him.

"Stay where you are." She warned.

"No." He grinned as he continue walking.

"Fine."

A few shots were fired but Lorca managed to deflect them with his magic gauntlet. As the woman ran out of ammo, Lorca finally made it over and grabbed her by the throat.

"You have very pretty eyes." He chuckled. "Pity I'm about to gouge them out of your head."

"Hey!" May called from behind.

Lorca turned and could see a small orb heading his way. He squinted for a better view but it was too late. A midair explosion caused the man to drop Rally and fling backwards, crashing into a nearby vehicle.

"You okay?" May asked as she helped her partner up.

"Yeah." Rally gasped rubbing her sore throat. "I'm fine."

"Kill them now!" Faust ordered his priests.

"You ready?" Rally turned to her friend, loading another clip into her gun.

"As I'll ever be." May winked as she held three grenades in each hand.

"_Destrua_!" A priest chanted, releasing a powerful bolt of energy.

Rally and May dodged the attack and watched as a nearby lamppost disintegrated before their very eyes. The same priest came running their way but a bullet to the head stopped him dead in his tracks.

"Forgive me, father." Rally cruelly joked as she mimicked the sign of the cross with her smoking barrel.

Another group of Blood Ring priests readied their wands and aimed at the two but May's powerful grenades managed to knock them back, killing some in the process. This only infuriated Faust even more.

"Insolent fools!" He growled. "Demon Knights! Charge forward!"

The four skeletal horsemen "flamed on" and rode the skies, heading for the Gunsmith Cats. Rally knew they were outmatched this time but had an idea suddenly pop in her head.

"May, give me one of your specialties." She held her hand out.

"Okaaaaay…." A confused May said as she handed a pink orb over.

Rally took out a small rod from her coat pocket and made a few alterations to her pistol, connecting May's grenade to the tip. As all four of the Demon Knights came closer, Rally rolled along the street with May close behind and aimed.

"God, I hope this works!" She closed her eyes and fired.

Sure enough, her plan worked as the small rod shot out of the gun and released the grenade, causing a powerful impact against the Demons. All four fell from their horses and landed on various parts of the street, temporarily disoriented and understandably furious.

"Nice one, Rally." May smiled. "But I don't think we're out of the woods just yet."

"Yeah, no shit." Rally loaded another clip into her pistol. "And I don't know what's worse. The fact that I'm running low on ammo or that we're not getting paid for this."

"Either way, it's still giving us something to do."

"Yup."

Just then, a powerful bolt of energy knocked the demon worshippers away and forced them into a corner. Faust looked around as the wind picked up and immediately knew who was behind the attack.

"Ahh… Hello, Sakura."

"Hello, dickweed." Sakura said as she slowly descended from the sky alone. "Picking on ordinary humans, are we?"

"Believe me. There anything _but_ ordinary."

Sakura noticed the damage inflicted on the priests and the Demon Knights then turned to a confused Rally and May. "Damn, you did all _that_?"

May proudly nodded. "Uh-huh!"

"Cool." Sakura grinned.

"Alone, are we?" Faust taunted.

"You wish."

With a snap of her fingers, Sakura's army materialized into view and surrounded Faust and his minions. Li, Tomoyo and Eriol appeared behind Sakura while Cerberus, Spinel Sun, Yue and Ruby Moon circled the skies. Meiling suddenly appeared from within the crowd and gave Faust a smug look.

"What now, huh?" She spread her arms threateningly. "What? You bad. Yeah, you bad."

Rally and May armed themselves again, readying for battle but Sakura held her hand up. She turned to them and slowly shook her head.

"I appreciate your help." She told them. "But we can take it from here."

"If it's all the same to you…" Rally cocked her gun. "…I think we'd like to stay and help waste these turkeys."

With a smile, Sakura nodded. "My name is Sakura Kinomoto."

"Rally Vincent." She then pointed to May. "And this is 'Minnie' May Hopkins."

"The Gunsmith Cats!" May cheered.

"Okay, then." Sakura turned back over to Faust. "You game for a rematch, Faust?"

"Oh, this isn't a rematch." Faust chuckled. "The only way that'll ever happen is in Hell. No, this is something different. This is… a welcome back party."

"All right. Then let's party."

In no time at all, Sakura, her army, her allies and the newly acquainted Gunsmith Cats charged in and did battle with Faust and his small horde of evil. Meanwhile, up above them all, a large shadow began to emerge from behind the clouds. Looking down on all of them, the beings inside the shadow readied themselves for the imminent invasion of all humanity.


	19. Tokyo Mew Mew Returns!

**CHAPTER NINETEEN**

Swarms of police cars and SWAT trucks were destroyed in a massive explosion sent forth by Faust's followers. The Demon Knights flew above the destruction and did battle with the sun and moon guardians while Sakura and her army held their own against everyone else.

Li charged his way through several members of the Blood Ring and trapped them in a web of lightning. Tomoyo and Meiling fought back-to-back and thwarted off every opponent with anything they could get their hands on. Eriol and several others created an energy field with their magic and pushed a group of priests away while Sakura floated in the air, face to face with Faust.

"You're outmatched this time, Faust." Sakura said with a sparkle in her eye. "Want to give up now?"

"Same old Sakura. You can never stop underestimating me." The warlord shook his head.

"There's a bigger threat coming, Faust. Bigger than you. If you're smart, you'll back down and save your own ass when it gets here."

"I will not yield."

Faust held out his arm and revealed the Orb of Osiris as it pulsated with an intense magical energy. The evil one absorbed the dark magic and sent forth a stream of ultraviolet lightning. Sakura simply waved her hand and deflected the blast with the use of the Shield and fused with the Fire, sending forth a barrage of flaming orbs.

"Useless." Faust shielded himself with an electric shield.

Suddenly, the warlord found himself tackled into a nearby building by a Power-charged Sakura. She grabbed Faust by the cape and swung him around, eventually kicking him back to the surface.

"Yeah!" She taunted. "Now who's bad!?"

"Lorca!" Faust called out to his 2nd in command.

"I'm on it, my lord." Lorca said as he activated the Sangria Gauntlet.

The dark aura surrounded the Spaniard and began burning his flesh off and increasing his muscle mass, transforming him into the dreaded Black Demon Knight. Like before, Lorca's face had become a horned skull smothered with black flames and his body covered with protruded bony spikes. With a swing from his glove-laden hand, Lorca managed to tear open the doorway to the demon realm, unleashing another swarm of Faust's deadly children.

"You just had to egg him on, didn't ya!?" Ruby griped as she head-locked the Red Knight.

"Fall back!" Sakura ordered her army as the demons and dragons came flying out of the swirling vortex.

"Oh Lord!" Jimmy gasped as he found himself surrounded by a pack of red-skinned demons. "You guys… ever hear of Jesus? Huh?" 

Then, like so many movies where the bullies pile up on the nerd, Jimmy found himself on the receiving end of a major pink belly.

"Clear the area!" Suki commanded as she unleashed a powerful wind attack that grounded several of the demons.

Just then, a pack of short horned-tail dragons hovered above the city streets and damaged everything in their way. To protect the public, Maya, Marvin and several more magicians stepped forward and created a wall of ice to block the dragons' inevitable fire attacks.

"Dear God, they're strong." Maya strained as she held her ground.

"Keep 'em back…" Marvin struggled as well.

Meanwhile, Sakura, Li, Tomoyo, Meiling and Eriol were cornered by more and more of Faust's minions while Rally and May desperately tried to break through to them.

"There's too many of these damn things!" Rally griped as she shot down a couple of gray-skins.

"Hold on, Sakura! We're coming!" May set off a round of explosives, eliminating more and more of Faust's children.

"Hurry, please!" Sakura punched her way through several more.

"Well, this is fun!" Li sarcastically quipped as he hacked his way through.

The path was then cleared as a bigger, much scarier demon armed with an enormous mace and scimitar readied to take Sakura and her friends down.

"Oh, shit!" Sakura dodged the demon's first attack. "Fire!"

Sakura's fire blasts failed to have any impact on the creature so Li swung his blade around and tried an electric attack.

"Try this on for size!" Li hopelessly unleashed his attack. "Oh, damn it!"

The creature growled and slammed his fist on the ground, causing a minor tremor that rattled Sakura's army. As Sakura temporarily fell disoriented, she looked up to see the large demon's humongous blade coming for her head.

"Oh, hell." She gulped.

But then a powerful blast pierced right through the creature's hand, forcing it to drop its weapon and wail out in pain. Sakura and the others turned their heads to see a familiar looking young woman with dark blue hair wearing a baby blue uniform while holding up a high-tech bow. Then the creature fell to another blow as a pink-haired woman, armed with a highly detailed sword slashed it through the chest.

"Ooh, that one had to hurt!" Mew Ichigo teased as she turned around and ran her blade through the demon's stomach. "Now, you guys!"

Mew Pudding dropped in and hurled a spinning blade that chipped off the creature's shoulders while Mew Lettuce used her razor sharp daggers to pin the demon down to the floor. Then Mew Zakuro joined in and strangled the creature with her holo-whip while Mew Mint finished the deed by shooting another arrow, this time in the demon's head.

"Well, _that_ was nasty." Mint shuddered.

Sakura slowly got up and was surprised to see Tokyo Mew Mew back in action. "Ichigo?"

"Hello, Sakura." Ichigo smiled. "You guys look like you could use some help."

"When in Rome, huh?"

"Yeah. Shall we?"

"Let's do this thing." 

Sakura and her allies turned around and faced Faust's minions once again as the Dark Lord himself stood by with a puzzled look on his face.

"Where the hell are all these people coming from!?" He growled. "Knights! Blood Ring! My Children! Finish them off now!"

"Earth!" Sakura fused with the card, raising a wall of rock from the ground and knocking down several by surprise. "Ichigo! You girls think you can take out these dragons for us?" 

"No problem." Pudding winked as she hopped on the back of an oncoming dragon. "Whoo-hoo! Damn, these things are fun!"

"Pudding, wait!" Zakuro chased after the youngest member.

Ichigo then turned to Sakura and shrugged. "I missed this. Didn't you?"

"Oh, yeah." Sakura slashed through a priest with the Sword. "Lots of fun." 

In the air, Kero and Spinel Sun held back the Green and Purple Knights while Yue made sure the Blue Knight wouldn't interfere with the battle on the ground.

"Your fight is with me, Demon." Yue said to his opponent.

"As you wish." The blue skull hissed as it rode its horse over to the moon guardian.

Nearby, Mew Zakuro managed to strangle one of the dragons with her holo-whip as she rode on its back while Mew Lettuce continually stabbing it with her daggers. The scaly creature let out a painful wail as it descended to the ground and crashed onto a group of demon fighters while the Mew girls jumped onto their next target. Mew Ichigo had already commandeered a dragon of her own and ran her blade through its head, forcing it to move from side to side in pain. She used this to her advantage and caused the dying dragon to knock down a few more nearby and assist her friends in the process.

"Come on, Zakuro!" Pudding laughed. "Tell me you would rather be doing this than going down the catwalk again!"

"Yeah, yeah. Keep your mouth shut." Zakuro rolled her eyes.

On the ground, Mint rolled along and sent forth several napalm-charged arrows towards the demon scourge as several magicians provided her with cover.

"There's so many bad guys, I can't keep up with them!" She whined.

"You'll learn to live with it." Meiling said as she flipped on by.

While the battle continued in the streets of Tomoeda, Aries stood by and watched. He could feel the presence of Exitir and his army watching over them, hidden in the clouds.

"I know you're here, Exitir." Aries said to himself. "Come and face me."

"_Not yet, Aries." _A deep voice whispered in the alien's mind.

"What are you counting down to?"

There was no reply. For a moment, Aries waited for a response but got nothing. He then furiously growled, "Answer me, damn it!"

In the middle of the heavy traffic, an impatient Motoko got out of Seta's van and headed for the danger, her sword case in hand.

"Motoko, get back here!" Seta demanded.

"No." She replied.

"Hey!" Kaolla called over one of the police officers directing the traffic. "What's going on?"

"It's hell on Earth all over again, kid." He said. "Luckily, Sakura and company are on it."

"And so am I." Motoko said to herself as she readied for battle.


	20. Love Hina Forever!

**CHAPTER TWENTY**

It wasn't long at all when several news helicopters took to the skies and captured the battleground raging in the heart of Tokyo. On the ground, trucks and vans drove up to the danger as the reporters themselves desperately tried to take their piece of the story.

"This is _Miranda Veracruz De La Hoya Cardinal _reporting live in Tokyo!" The annoying Latina reporter spoke into her microphone as she and her cameraman wandered in the middle of the battlefield. "It seems the great city is under attack yet again--much like my marriage--and the people's only hope is none other than Card Captor Sakura and--"

The woman was cut off as Ichigo swooped past her, riding on the back of a dragon and hollering like a maniac. "Yeah! Whoo-hoo!"

"…Tokyo Mew Mew?" The reporter faced the camera again and smiled. "It's official! Tokyo Mew Mew _and_ the Tokyo Knights are back in business and are working together to stop this plague of… what the hell are they fighting, anyway?"

Yue grounded several demon fighters with his magic while dodging every attack the Blue Knight threw at him. The moon guardian then grabbed the Demon Knight by the throat and dislocated his cervical disc, temporarily disorienting him.

"Curse you, moon guardian!" The Knight fled from the scene.

"Mistress!" Yue called out to Sakura. "We must retreat! There are too many of them!"

"Aren't there always!?" Sakura griped as she and Faust exchanged fire attacks.

"Hey, that hippie with the wings is right!" Rally cried as she blew several priests away. "I'm starting to run low on ammo and I don't see an end to these suckers!"

"It's the portal!" Eriol slashed his way through several demons. "So long as Lorca has the Sangria Gauntlet activated, the portal will remain open! We have to close it!"

The Black Knight let off a bloodcurdling growl as he lifted a nearby truck and tossed it at some of the wandering public.

"No!" Sakura cried, reaching for a card.

Luckily, the vehicle was mysteriously sliced in half by an energy wave of unknown origin. After a few moments of "WTF?", Motoko Aoyama came running up to the group of magicians and vigilantes with her katana in hand and surveyed the area.

"Demons." The young woman growled, arming herself for battle. "I really hate demons."

Motoko saw a couple of gray-skins battling some magicians and sprinted across the street, eventually slicing the creatures in half. The magicians looked up at Motoko then exchanged confused glances.

"What the hell?" One of them asked.

"Where did _she_ come from?" Said the other.

With a grin and a wink, Motoko turned away and took out several more demons as Sakura and her allies watched on whilst doing battle themselves.

"Who's the rookie with the katana?" Li asked.

"Hell if I know." Meiling shrugged. "I think she's just a civilian."

"Yeah but _what_ a civilian!" Tomoyo grinned as she knocked a priest out cold.

Sakura formed a ring of earth and fire around her and her allies to try and come up with a new plan of attack.

"Okay…" She paused to take a breath. "…This is getting old. We need a new plan."

"What have we been saying!?" Mew Pudding shrieked. "Let's get the hell out of here!"

"No! We have to protect the city!"

Faust hovered into the air and grinned as he watched his minions tear down the walls of Sakura's defenses. He then looked up at the swarm of helicopters and destroyed them with a blink of an eye. Then, something caught his eye that he did not expect. It was coming towards the city at a rapid speed, practically leaving behind a jet stream. The flying object zoomed past Faust and went inside Sakura's safety zone, where the young woman looked up to see an old threat approaching her.

"Sakura?" Ruby pointed up. "What is that?"

"Oh, shit." Sakura sighed.

Kanaye, wearing the upgraded Shadow Reaper suit, plucked Sakura from the ground and flew her across the damaged city streets with his hover pack. The crazed fugitive had Sakura in a chokehold and extended a razor sharp blade from the side of his glove and prepared to gut her.

"Time to die, Sakura!" He laughed maniacally as his facemask retracted. "May your death be slow and painful!"

"Kanaye!" Sakura struggled with her voice. "Look around you! There's too much at stake her! Revenge should be the last thing on your mind!"

"It is! You see, after I kill you, I expect to fall victim to your friends or any other pursuers you may have out here tonight. But not without slashing your throat first! So you see? All's well, ends well!"

"That's… _stupid_!"

Sakura burst into flames in an attempt to break from the Reaper's grasp but the armor proved to be too strong. Annoyed, Kanaye head-butted Sakura with his metallic mask and broke the connection between her and the Fire. As he flew her around in circles, Kanaye raised his bladed arm and immediately found himself being forced back to the surface.

"What the hell is going on!?" The Reaper turned his head and saw an angry Black Knight dragging the two of them down with his massive weight.

"Kanaye!" Lorca's raspy voice growled. "You're mine…"

"No… Lorca, listen to me! I'm not your enemy! She is! I'm going to--"

"Silence!"

The Black Knight pounced onto the Reaper and forced him to let go of Sakura. The two villains then crash-landed on the street as Sakura regained her focus and took off with the Fly.

Motoko watched as the Demon Knight leader pounded on the armor-clad Shadow Reaper then swung her blade around in a circle.

"I can take 'em all out." She said to herself as she prepared to run into them.

She was stopped in her tracks as Seta's beat up old van charged into the scene and ran over several Blood Ringers and some of the scrawnier demons. The shaggin' wagon then made a hard left and swerved around in a circle until Seta came face to face with Motoko.

"Hey!" The professor cried. "We're trying to _leave_ Tokyo, not die in it! Get in the van!"

She shook her head. "I'm staying here."

"Are you crazy!?" Narusegawa pleaded. "Motoko, please! Do you know what the hell that thing was that Seta run over!? Huh!? I don't! And I'm sure you don't either!"

"It's a demon."

"…Okay, so it's a demon. Big whoop."

"Naru, let me handle this." Keitaro butt in. "Motoko! Get in here now or I'll tell your sister! Yeah! That's right! I'm gonna tell on you!"

Everyone paused for a moment and gave Keitaro a very stupid glare. A smack on the head from Naru was able to shut him up for good.

"Motoko, you cannot stay here!" Kaolla tried to persuade her friend. "It's not safe!"

"I don't care." The young woman continued to stand her ground. "I have to protect my home and uphold my family's tradition."

"Motoko, this isn't some kind of popularity contest!" Naru continued. "This is real danger that none of us are used to!"

"Hi there!" Sakura suddenly landed in front of the van. "Hey, is she with you? She's pretty damn good. Do you mind if I borrow her for a few minutes? Thanks! Come on!"

Sakura grabbed Motoko by the hand and took off, leaving the rest of the Hinata residents a bit stupefied. With a sigh, Naru cracked her knuckles and looked over to her husband.

"Keitaro, dear?" She started. "I guess we're not going to make it to Grandma Hina's penthouse in New York, after all."

"Oh no." Keitaro shook his head in protest. "We are _not_ going out there! We're not vigilantes! We're not heroes! We're not super powered beings! We're college students!"

"Technically, I'm still a college dropout." Kitsune said with a drunken hiccup. "Ain't it funny?"

Naru got up from her seat and faced everyone in the van, trying to show them her sincerity. After a brief moment of silence, they all nodded and agreed to face the danger in an "all for one, one for all" type of fashion.

"Okay, everybody." Seta grinned as he revved the engines. "May fortune favor the foolish."

"We're dead." Keitaro started to sob. "Dead, I tell you! DEAD!!!

The van shot out towards the battlefield and crashed into several demon warriors, killing some and mutilating others. With several swerves to the right and left, young Sara was able to slingshot several enemies through her window while a drunken Kitsune smashed several bottles of her favorite Sake onto their heads. Naru eventually climbed out of the vehicle and started using what little fighting skills she had on some very petrified Blood Ringers.

"She's gorgeous but she's fiery!" One of them said as he tried to flee.

"Hey, I didn't say run!" Naru grabbed the priest's hood and pounded him to the floor.

Kaolla's fierce agility and limberness allowed her to swing from several nearby poles and pounce on her enemies, beating them to a pulp. She leap-frogged over a couple of demons and took out one of her inventions, placing it on their heads and frying their brains.

"Hey, this is fun!" Kaolla exclaimed as she continued beating down more bad guys.

Keitaro, meanwhile, panicked and hid behind the van while Mutsumi remained in her seat, sleeping through the whole ordeal. When a demon knocked into the van, rocking it gently, Mutsumi woke up and looked around.

"What the… oh… how nice." She smiled before passing out again.

Sakura and her countless allies admired the bravery of the Hinata residents and formed another wave of attack.

* * *

Below in the lab, Ryou and Keiichiro witnessed the incredible battle from the main computer and noticed a large figure appearing on the radar screen.

"Hey, what the hell is that?" Keiichiro pointed. "That doesn't look right."

"No…" Ryou shook his head. "…It doesn't."

"It's getting closer."

"I know. What about that signal? Anything new?"

Keiichiro checked another computer and nodded. "It's getting faster. More aggressive."

"Oh, _this_ I like."

"What do we do?"

"Activate the transporter and get a lock on Sakura, the girls and anyone who looks like they're on our side. We're getting them the hell out of there before it's too late."


	21. They Arrive

**CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE **

_**A/N: Yup. It's official. This is the longest CCS story I've ever written. And about damn time, too. **_

General Armstrong and Captain Yelland entered the room, where several naval officers were currently hosing down their find in the ocean. They stood behind a protective window and watched as the crew continued to steam clean the timer probe, which continued displaying the countdown.

"Is all that necessary, Captain?" The general asked.

"Safety precaution, sir." Yelland nodded. "We don't want to get infected with any kind of alien disease."

"You understand the Secretary of Defense and the President are breathing down my ass. Right now they've got every ship, plane and outpost ready just in case these guys show up to pick a fight."

"Let's hope it doesn't come to that, sir."

"General Armstrong! Captain Yelland!" A shipmate hurried into the room. "Sirs! You have to see this!"

"What is it?" Armstrong demanded to know.

"They're… the aliens… I see them!"

"Really? Damn, I gotta check this out!"

**Meanwhile, in a more interesting part of the story…**

The rampaging Black Knight grabbed Kanaye by his neck and flung him across the broken streets, where the rest of the Demon Knights were waiting to pound on him. Kind of like that chubby nerdy kid in the halls that nobody likes and the jocks are always beating up on 'cause he won't give out the answers to the algebra test and he's always getting caught taking a peak at the girl's locker room but the coach never snitches because he's got this-- Oh, sorry. I haven't done that in a while. Anyways…

Kanaye switched on the rotating blade of his Klaw X-2000 and pushed the Demon Knights back. Luckily for him, the moon and sun guardians reappeared to continue their aerial bout.

"Oh, thank God…" Kanaye sighed until he noticed Lorca coming after him again. "…No, wait! Lorca!"

"Enough!" The creature growled as he swung his rusty scimitar.

Tokyo Mew Mew and the Gunsmith Cats fought back to back in a circle, shooting down and slicing through every demon, dragon and Blood Ringer that came their way. Sakura and her team, however, scattered everywhere to take down any lingerers while the Hinata residents escorted the majority of the wandering public away to safety. Tanks, military jeeps and other Japanese forces arrived to help assist the evacuation any way they could.

"Sand!" Sakura cried, fusing with the card and becoming a giant whirlwind of dust that blew several enemies away.

She then maneuvered the card's abilities to transform her into a giant statue-like sand creature and pound on every demon that crossed her path.

"Me sand woman! Me crush you like bugs! Mwa-Ha ha ha ha!" Sakura cried out in a deep, booming voice.

"Sakura?" Li raised an eyebrow.

"Nah, I'm just kidding."

Eriol grabbed Meiling and Tomoyo, shielding them with a magic hull and aimed his staff towards the demon vortex. "I've got to close off that damn portal!"

"Eriol, you can't!" Tomoyo reminded him. "We need to destroy the power gems, remember!?"

"I've got to try _something_!"

The sorcerer concentrated all his energy and released a powerful blast from his staff towards the swirling vortex. The staff's energy ribbon and the vibrant portal met with a massive spark of light and remained stuck on each other for a few moments before another dragon poked its head out and threw off Eriol's concentration.

"Uh-oh." Eriol gulped as the dragon growled and flew out of the portal, with its eyes fixed on him. "Tomoyo? Meiling? Run."

"Okay!" Meiling had no trouble following his order.

The dragon zoomed towards the young man, knocking down several combatants, and prepared to bite his head off when suddenly--

_**ZAP! **_

_**BOOM!**_

In the blink of an eye, the dragon and several more creatures like it, vanished into a glob of fire coming from an unknown source. Confused, both hero and villain turned around to see who fired the attack.

"Hey! Good one, Sakura!" Mew Pudding cheered.

"That wasn't me, Pudding." Sakura shook her head, looking up to the black sky.

"I'm telling ya, man." May gulped. "It's those damn clouds."

Everyone gathered around and kept their eyes focused on the dark clouds that began to pulsate in the dark sky, bringing the fighting to a stop. Even Faust couldn't help but wonder what was heading their way. No one could. Except for Aries, who stood in the middle of the street with a lump in his throat and a weight on his heart.

"Oh, this can't be good." Li shook his head.

White flashes of light began to spark within the dark clouds, much like Sakura's dream, as the clouds themselves began to bulge out. A large, curved hull poked its head from the thickness of the sky as little green lights scattered along the exterior. As the object moved further, they could all see that the ship was round in front, pointed in the back and had two fins on each side.

"What the hell is that thing?" Naru grabbed her husband's arm.

"I… I don't know." Keitaro gazed at the alien craft.

More sparks of light from the clouds illuminated the ship's exterior as it hovered directly above Tokyo, leaving no part uncovered.

**Back on the USS Nimitz**

General Armstrong, Captain Yelland and the rest of the ship's crew stood on the bridge and watched as the clouds darkened and bulged outward.

"Was I right?" The General asked.

"What's happening?" Yelland turned to one of his officers.

"I don't know, sir. Radar was clear a minute ago and the next…"

A lightshow began in the dark and soon, another massive alien carrier appeared from the clouds, hovering above all of Hawaii. The ship's crew remained awestruck and confused at the same time, while the General reached for a radio.

"What are you doing?" Yelland asked.

"I'm calling Washington." He said. "I have a very bad feeling we're not the only ones who are seeing this."

**Beneath Café Mew Mew**

"Oh, Jesus! Oh, Jesus!" Ryou began to panic in his chair as he watched the infrared screen on his computer. "They're here! Keiichiro! Have you got a lock on them yet!?"

"I'm working on it!" The other said as he welded some wires together from the back of the lab.

"Hurry up, damn it!"

"Hurry, my ass! This thing takes time! I don't want to end up bringing half those bloodsuckers to the lab and have them ravaging _my_ kitchen!"

"Shut up! Shut up!" Ryou switched on a radio and spoke into his piece. "Touya? You ready?"

"Ready." Touya responded on the other line. "Just send me the coordinates."

"I'm already giving them to you." Ryou typed in a few keys.

"I'm on my way. Touya out."

Keiichiro paused and lifted his welding mask. "Was that Touya? Sakura's brother?"

"Yeah. He's bringing some others here with the jet. They'll be safe here in case these guys start to attack."

"Wow. This is just like old times, huh?"

"No, this is more tense. Now will you please… SHUT UP AND GET TO WORK ON THAT DAMN TRANSPORTER!?"

Before going back to work, Keiichiro grinned and gave Ryou the finger. "Right here, buddy."

* * *

Meiling hurried over to Rally's Mustang and opened the passenger door, where the timer probe remained seated. She opened the hatch and noticed the countdown was still going.

"I don't get it." She sighed. "Why's this thing still counting down?"

"It doesn't matter." Aries said as he walked by.

The Hinata residents rushed over to Sakura and her team for protection, their eyes still fixed on the enormous ship above them.

"Sakura." Motoko said, unsure of what else to say.

The green-eyed girl exchanged glances with her and shrugged, unaware of what to do as well. She wrapped her hand around Li's and placed another on her pouch of cards.

"Is this it?" Li asked, a hint of fear in his voice. "Is this how we're going out?"

"I…" Sakura was at a loss for words.

The ship began to emit a low humming noise that alarmed everyone. Faust turned to his minions and signaled them to return to the vortex.

"Another time then, Sakura?" Faust winked as he vanished before her.

But the girl didn't acknowledge him. A sincere look came across her face as she thought to herself, wondering what to do next.

Tomoyo, meanwhile, took out her camera and began filming. "I can't believe I'm actually filming this."

"Tomoyo, are you sure this is the right time?" Eriol put his hands over her shoulders.

"I don't think it matters anymore."

"Aries?" Kero turned to the alien. "What's happening?"

"They have arrived." Was all he said.

"Oh, is that all?"

"Whoa." Rally put her gun away then turned to her partner. "You think we'll get hazard pay for this?"


	22. Leaving The Scene

**CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO**

Sakura, Li, Tomoyo, Eriol, Meiling, the Guardians, the Gunsmith Cats, the Hinata residents, Tokyo Mew Mew and the magic army all remained in the street with their eyes gazed up at the strange alien craft. Seconds turned into minutes and the lightning began to flash again. This time, the winds picked up and the snow began to shroud all of Tokyo.

"The hell?" Sakura held out her hand. "It's snowing."

"Strange weather patterns…" Ichigo said to herself. "…Just like on the news."

"But why?"

"The ship's entry into Earth's atmosphere causes a rift in the normal weather flow." Aries explained. "The machinery inside the craft is so complex, they have an effect on the weather and its precipitation."

"They're going to attack, aren't they?" Meiling gulped.

"I wouldn't doubt it."

"Aries?" Sakura nudged the man "You had a plan for me? Remember?"

"Yes. I remember. Sakura, it's imperative that you--"

Aries was cut off as he and the majority of the magicians, including Sakura, fell to the floor with their hands to their ears. They rocked around in pain, trying to drown out the sharp noise ringing inside their heads. Meiling, Tomoyo, Rally, Mae, TMM and the Hinata residents, minus Motoko, stood around and watched unaffected by the strange occurrence.

"What the hell's going on!?" Rally freaked. "Are they okay?"

"I don't know." Tomoyo shrugged as she tried to help Eriol up. "Eriol, are you okay? Speak to me! Please!"

"T-Tomoyo!" Eriol winced from the pain. "…The noise… it's…"

"Oh, God…" Tomoyo kneeled before her beloved while he continued to writhe around.

"Motoko, what's happening!?" Shinobu helped turn her friend over. "Motoko?"

"I… don't… know…" Motoko grit her teeth.

Sakura remained pinned to the floor and gathered all her strength to lift her head up. She could see everyone suffering from this strange hum that was obviously coming from the mysterious spaceship overhead. Her hand quaked as she took out one of her cards and tried to focus her energy on it.

"…Th-Thunder…" She shuddered, trying to ignore the pain.

The card heard its master's command and glowed immensely, unleashing a powerful bolt of lightning towards the sky. The powerful blast deflected off the ship's hull, causing no particular damage but breaking the silence nonetheless. After a few moments, Sakura and her allies regained their focus and stood up on their own again. The noise was gone as well as the pain but Aries knew it wouldn't end here.

"What was that, Aries?" Marvin furiously growled as he helped Maya up.

"Kane. He's testing us." Aries rubbed his temples. "He's trying to see which one of us poses any threat."

"So he lets off some kind of alien dog-whistle?" Suki rubbed the blood from her nose.

"Don't y'all get it?" Jimmy said from the middle of the group. "He's tryin' to see which of us has some kind of telepathic ability that could be disrupted and corrupted."

"Jimmy, for the first time I agree with you." Pops nodded. "I knew there was something weird about all this."

"We've got to get out of here." Li breathed heavily.

An impatient Aries stepped away from the group and walked towards a nearby wreckage, looking up towards the ship.

"Exitir!" He cried. "I know you're up there somewhere! And if you're not, I know you can hear me! Come down and fight!"

"Whoa!" Sakura pulled the alien aside. "Yeah, I'm gonna say 'no' on that one!"

She then turned around and looked up at the ship, trying to make contact with the alien leader as well. "Hi there! Listen! You guys mind going back home? I'm kind of preoccupied right now with this whole Faust, Demon Knight and Kanaye business! You come back next week and I _promise_ I can fit you in!"

There was no reply of any kind. The ship remained hovering above the city, blinking its strange green lights while the magic army remained silent.

"Is that a yes?" Sakura scratched her head.

**In The Lab**

"Okay, Ryou!" Keiichiro exclaimed as he finished working on the transporter. "This baby's good to go!"

"Yes!" Ryou excitedly wheeled himself to the computer.

He ran his fingers along the keyboard and brought up a digitized map of Tokyo. Several red dots indicated all those who protected the city as several smudges of green and yellow indicated the amount of destruction.

"Jesus." Ryou was surprised at the large amount of heroes. "There's got to be over a hundred magicians here."

"We've got plenty of room, Ryou. Don't worry about it." Keiichiro gave the thumbs up. "Whenever you're ready!"

"Let's do this thing."

* * *

Back on the surface, Sakura and the others could feel some kind of tingle running through their bodies. They tried to move but were suddenly confined to the limited space they were standing on.

"Oh, what _now_!?" Sakura whined.

Suddenly, everyone broke into several particles of light and vanished from thin air as the military and remaining onlookers watched in confusion.

"AAAHHH!" Screamed one woman. "Those sons of bitches abandoned us!"

"WE'RE GONNA DIE!" Screamed another. "THE BASTARDS!"

**The White House**

President Wiley Douglas stood out in the balcony of the White House and watched in awe as the large, angular spaceship remained hovering the nation's capitol.

"Good God." He said under his breath as the house speaker approached him.

"Mr. President?" She said. "You go on in five minutes."

"Yes. Thank you, Martha." He then turned to the Secretary of Defense, who has just entered the building. "David, get out here."

"Mr. President?" 63 year old David Carter said as he stepped onto the balcony.

"Things at the Pentagon settled?"

"We've already got our men on standby, sir. It's your move now."

"…In all my life I've never seen such a thing."

"Neither have I, sir."

"All right." He nodded. "It's time to alert the public. There's going to be a lot of frightened people out there."

There was a long pause, as if the president was waiting for the house speaker to say something witty in response. Alas, no such thing happened. She turned and noticed the President anticipating her reaction but shrugged.

"What?" She asked. "Why are you looking at me like that?"

"Oh…" The President sighed. "You're no fun anymore."

* * *

Sakura and her countless allies arrived in the lab, unharmed but very confused as to what happened. Ichigo and the Mews, of course, knew exactly where they were and tried to calm everyone down.

"OH GOD!" Meiling panicked. "They beamed us up! We're in their ship! I knew it! They're probably gonna anal-probe us and stick tubes up our noses! And when they're done, they're gonna use us as their sex slaves! NO! NOOOO!"

"Meiling!" Ichigo grabbed her by the shoulders and began shaking. "Meiling, it's alright!"

"Anal probe! NOOOOO!"

_**SMACK!  
**_

"…Huh?"

"Meiling, I'm sorry I smacked you. But I had to calm you down."

"And I suppose the words 'calm down' didn't register?"

"If we're all finished here…" Ryou got everyone's attention. "…I'd like to welcome you to the lab."


	23. State Of The Address

**CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE**

All eyes were on the man in the gray suit as he calmly stepped up to the podium, clearing his throat before he began. Several reporters, photographers and note takers stood up from their chairs and readied themselves for the questions they were yearning to have answered.

President Douglas looked at the teleprompter and nodded when he noticed the small red light switch on, indicating he was now transmitting throughout every home in America.

"My fellow Americans…" He began. "…a unique and very rare occurrence has just… uhh… _occurred_."

The speaker of the house, vice president and every other member of the White House all smacked their foreheads as they looked down in disbelief.

"Christ, what a moron." Vice President Mitchell grumbled. "Ten seconds in and he's already flubbing up."

The President was now sweating immensely as he tried to continue his address. "…Uhh… f-for years many of us have wondered whether or not we're alone in the universe. Whether we're the only intelligent beings capable of contact with another world."

"Intelligent, my ass." The house speaker snickered.

"Right now people across the globe, not just America, are experiencing the same kind of phenomenon we are. After generations of speculation, after all the conspiracies we've endured and after the recent weather anomalies that have been randomly occurring, it looks like we may finally have our answer. We are _not _alone."

All across the nation, countless viewers heard the President's words either at home, at work through the radio or passing by on the street. In other countries, Douglas' speech was translated word for word but no matter who or where the people were, the only thing on their minds right now was fear.

"…The alien crafts have been thus far located in every major city in the world. DC, New York, Los Angeles, Gotham City, Cairo, Malaysia, Shanghai, Moscow, London and Tokyo--just to name a few." The president paused for a moment then readied the floor for questions. "Any questions? Yes, you there."

"Mr. President." A young woman stood up. "Should we consider these aliens hostile?"

"As of now, we have yet to determine the real intentions of these otherworldly visitors. We are still trying to make contact with them but have failed to do so over the past hour."

Another reporter stood up, a notepad in his hand. "Mr. President, what about the rumors of an alien signal embedded in a hidden frequency?"

"Uhh…" Douglas froze in place. "…Right now that information is classified."

"Ooh, _classified_!" The Vice President jotted down on a pad. "That's another big word I thought he'd never use!"

While their boss was busy trying to ease the public's minds, the VP, the house speaker and the Secretary of Defense were busy snickering and joking behind his back while huddling together in a corner.

"Okay, I'll bet $50 that he'll have a panic attack live on the air." Secretary Carter said as he laid his money down.

"I'll take that bet." The house speaker took out a bill.

"I'm in." The VP concurred.

"Mr. President!" Another reporter stood up. "Is it true you never graduated high school?"

"What!?" Douglas was now drenched with sweat as everyone paused, waiting for his answer.

He was now at a loss for words. With the world shrouded in darkness by a swarm of alien visitors, he was now being asked whether or not he had a high school diploma. He stammered for a bit and shook in place, trying to come up with a reasonable answer but the guy was too much of an idiot to realize all he had to say was "next question" and move on to someone else.

"W-what you have t-to understand is… uhh…" He licked his lips nervously as his eyes shifted left to right. "…Y-you see… what I'm t-trying to s-say is…"

"Oh, God…" Members of the Cabinet started to choke on their repressed laughter.

"Oh, to hell with it." The President said as he kicked the podium down, forcing the press to back away. "Don't you people get it!? We're dead! Dead, I tell you! DEAD!!!"

It was now official. The President of the United States of America was now having a panic attack on live TV. Across the nation and around the globe, people's hopes of security were being diminished as they saw a very insane Wiley Douglas bend over and defecate an enormous geyser of feces all over the American flag. This, in turn, forced VP Mitchell, the house speaker and Secretary Carter to fall back in tremendous fits of laughter.

"WE'RE DONE FOR! RUN FOR YOUR LIVES!" The President screamed at the American public as he came face to face with the camera, holding it with his bare hands. "THIS IS THE END! THE END, I TELL YOU!"

Two of his bodyguards then tried to pull him away from the camera but to no avail. The President continued to shout obscenities to his people.

"NO! GET OFF ME! IF YOU'RE SMART, YOU'LL SAVE YOUR OWN ASS! HEY, AL QAEDA!" He then flipped the bird on live TV. "SUCK IT!"

The President was then silenced as he was suddenly pounced on by several Secret Service agents, in a desperate attempt to calm the airwaves. The screens across the homes and the transmission on the radios suddenly went fuzzy and eventually died out.

**Meanwhile…**

Sakura recognized the blond-headed young man standing at the stairway and smiled. "Ryou."

"Hey, Sakura."

"We're in a laboratory?" Li asked, looking around.

"Yes we are, Li."

"Good news, everyone!" Keiichiro popped up from behind Ryou carrying a silver tray. "I made muffins!"

"Muffins!" Kero and Suppi charged at the plate, knocking Keiichiro down in the process.

"Why did you bring us here?" Sakura asked.

"Uhh, hello!" Ryou waved at the girl. "Did you not see that round, metal thing in the sky? That's a spaceship, sweetie!"

"I know what it is."

"I'd trust him, Sakura." Ichigo reassured her friend. "We have plenty of experience in this field and so far, we haven't met an alien who _didn't_ want a piece of us."

"I'm a little confused." Professor Seta butt in. "I thought you girls retired."

"So did I." Zakuro rolled her eyes.

"Well we came _out_ of retirement to help Sakura take down all these bad guys that have been appearing lately!" Pudding exclaimed as she hopped on Sakura's back.

"Yeah, thanks." Sakura blushed.

"How do you guys know each other?" Keitaro asked.

"We worked together a couple of times in the past." Tomoyo answered with a smile on her face.

"Back when we were younger." Mint nodded.

"And it seems fate has brought us back together after all these years." Eriol grinned.

"And straight into the frying pan." Mew Lettuce said.

"With some extra help, I see." Ryou pointed out Rally, May and the Hinata members.

"Yo!" May winked.

"We don't belong here." Keitaro protested. "We're just a bunch of college students! We've got nothing!"

"Speak for yourself, Urashima." Motoko conked him on the head.

"I don't know the rest of these guys, though." Keiichiro pointed out to the many strange faces in Sakura's army. "But I'm positive they're on our side."

"Ain't that the truth?" Jimmy nodded.

Ichigo and Sakura exchanged glances before turning over to Aries, who had a strange feeling dwelling inside him.

"Aries?" Sakura started. "What now? Do we just wait for them to start trashing the place?"

"If we strike now, we may provoke an unwarranted attack from Exitir and his men." Aries warned.

"But I thought that's the main reason he came here for. Destruction."

"Yes but he's still testing us. Waiting to see if there's anyone who poses a _real _threat to him."

"You mean to tell me he didn't see us out there!?" Meiling butt in. "Come on!"

"You don't understand, Meiling. Exitir is a very powerful leader. In more ways than one, you can imagine. His mind is sharp, his sword sharper. His skills at hand-to-hand combat are unmatched and his strength is insurmountable."

"So what's the problem?" Sakura asked with a twinkle in her eye. "He's afraid he'll get beat by a girl?"

"We can't just wait around for them to go first, Aries." Li said in a firm voice. "We strike now while there's still time."

"Speaking of time…" Rally took the timer probe away from Meiling. "…What the hell is this thing!? And what is it counting down to!?"

"I wish I knew." Aries sighed.

"So we strike first." Eriol suggested.

"It's not that easy, Hiiragizawa. Even if we _were_ to start something, we wouldn't be able to penetrate the shields on that carrier."

"Wanna bet?" Sakura asked as she headed over to Ryou and Keiichiro. "You two. Take me back there now."

"WHAT!?" They shrieked.

"Sakura, hold on a minute…" Ichigo placed her hand on Sakura's arm. "You don't know what you're up against."

"Well I'll soon find out then, won't I?"

"You mean _we'll _find out." Li stepped behind her.

"Oh, Jesus…" Keiichiro started to panic. "Ryou, I think we've got a problem!"

"I don't think so!" Ryou stood in their way. "Nobody's going out there until we know what we're dealing with!"

"It could take hours." Sakura protested. "By then, they'll already be ahead of us and we'll be defenseless."

"Sakura--"

"I'm not taking any chances." She then lifted Ryou up by the collar via the Power. "Got that?"

"Uh-huh." He nodded with a squeal.

Sakura and Li walked over to the transporter when Tomoyo suddenly walked up behind them much to Eriol's surprise.

"Tomoyo, wait!" He reached for her. "What are you doing!?"

"I'm gonna check this out!" She said as she whipped out her video camera. "I'm _way_ behind on my video journals!"

"Mistress, perhaps--" Yue said as he was cut off by Sakura.

"No, Yue." She raised her finger. "You guys stay here in case something goes wrong."

"I strongly advise you remain here with us, Sakura." Aries continued. "If you challenge Exitir, he _will_ destroy you."

"We'll see about that." She then turned her attention over to Ryou, who was hesitantly restarting the machine. "Okay, Ryou."

"Oh, God…" Ryou sighed. "Listen. At the first sign of trouble, I'm bringing you back. Okay?"

Sakura nodded. "Agreed."

Ryou gave Keiichiro the signal to turn the machine back on. Three circular lights swept the floor and eventually made their way over to Sakura, Tomoyo and Li before finally breaking them into small light particles. In a matter of seconds, they were gone.

"I hope she knows what she's doing." Eriol looked down.

"She doesn't." Aries said as he rounded up Maya, Pops and Suki. "You three come with me."

"Aw, hell." Ryou said as they approached him. "Keiichiro, turn it back on."

"But--"

"NOW!"

Seconds later, Aries and his away team were gone as well. A small bleep emitted from the computer as Keiichiro quickly headed over to check it out.

"Ryou." He said. "It's Touya. They're coming in."

"Raise the landing platform."


	24. In Captivity

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR**

The purple and blue haze filled the air as flashes of light and gusts of wind continued to roar into the night sky. The rough, coarse and shaky black rocks surrounded the wandering fleet of demons and priests as they continued down the broken down gray path. Two muscular demons with horns sticking from their temples carried a mysterious stranger with a sackcloth over his head. His hands were bound together and the guard behind him constantly prodded him along with his spear, laughing all the while. The heavily mutated Lorca snickered to himself as he and Fingle continued following Faust along the Demon Realm.

"Why are we hiding from those things, my lord?" Fingle asked. "They don't seem like a threat."

"I'm not taking any chances, Aram." Faust said. "We'll see how Sakura fares against them first and see if we can… _negotiate_."

"Has your power been fully restored?"

"Almost." Faust held the Orb of Osiris firmly in his hand. "But once we have raised the rest of our army, we can return to the Earth realm and continue destroying it."

He then heard the captive grunting and putting up a fight with the demon guards. "And how is our guest?"

The Black Knight growled as he walked over to the prisoner, removing the sackcloth and revealing a beaten Kanaye underneath.

"Let me go. You're making a mistake." The 46 year old demanded.

"Silence." Lorca swept his metallic glove across the back of Kanaye's head. "You're in no position to demand anything."

"Why did you bring me here?"

"I want to finish you off myself."

"Lorca, please!"

"I am not Lorca. I am the Black Knight!" He furiously grabbed Kanaye by the hair. "Follower of Faust, wielder of the Sangria Gauntlet."

"Easy, Christopher." Faust placed his hand on the Black Knight's. "He may have betrayed you all those years ago but he shares the same goal as us."

"I don't give a shit about world domination." Kanaye spat out the blood from his mouth.

"No, not that. The death of Sakura Kinomoto." Faust then gave Kanaye's heavily armored suit a once-over. "Interesting choice of apparel. It seems you were indeed prepared to give Sakura the thrashing of her life."

"Yes…"

"You're six years too late, I'm afraid." Faust joked, winking over to Lorca. "But I must say I'm impressed nonetheless. For a human, you're quite resourceful."

"So are you."

"I stopped being human centuries ago, little man. Do not take me for one of them."

"Where… where are we going?" Kanaye changed the subject.

"Home."

**Tomoeda**

The black ship remained still above the city lights as the snow continued to fall. The streets were now cleared except for the few remaining military vehicles that stood guard. A loud and powerful gust of wind flew past, slightly alarming them until they saw the figure flying overhead.

"What was that?" A soldier asked.

"It looks like Sakura." Another said while looking with his binoculars. "And I think she's trying to get their attention."

"What?"

Sakura hovered in front of the massive spacecraft with her arms crossed and black cape draped behind her, swaying ever so slightly with the breeze. Drops of snow began to pile on her black suit but it didn't bother her. Her attention was focused on the ship, which didn't seem to care at the moment who was demanding its audience.

"I know you're in there, Exitir." She said aloud. "Come out and play."

A sudden burst of wind and snow flew past but it didn't sway the young woman. After a brief silence, she could feel a presence roaming in her head. Sure enough, the alien leader was making a telepathic link with her.

"_Hello, Sakura_…" A deep voice boomed in her head. "_This is your conscience speaking, ha ha ha_."

"What do you want?" She said aloud, trying to force him outside.

"_Your planet._"

"Then come get it."

"_Soon. Once the countdown is complete, then we'll be ready. And Earth will be mine for the taking_."

"Why wait?"

"_Patience, child. You don't know who you're messing with._"

"Then enlighten me."

"_Are you sure that's what you want?_"

"Positive."

Another break of silence and this time, Sakura could tell something big was about to go down. In the distance she could hear a rumble and clenched her fists as it grew louder and closer. Then, right before her eyes, a rectangular hatch slid open and shrouded the card mistress with a pulsating blue light.

"Oh, what the hell?" Sakura put a hand to her face.

Below, Li and Tomoyo looked up at the strange light that was covering Sakura and stepped forward, ready for anything.

"That doesn't look too bad." Tomoyo said as she held her camera up for a better view.

"I don't like it." Li shook his head. "Sakura better get back down here."

* * *

The ground where the now defunct Café Mew Mew resided started to separate and give rise to a landing strip as the Knight One thundered overhead. Inside the cockpit, Touya could see his destination and fiddled with the controls in order to make the landing just right. Awaiting him on the strip were Ryou, Eriol, Yue and Ruby Moon, who watched as the dark blue jet landed with ease.

"Where the hell is everyone?" Touya asked as he stepped down from the ramp.

"Nice to see you too." Ryou frowned.

Sonomi, Fujitaka and Kaho followed the young man down the ramp as Ruby immediately pounced on Touya, smothering him with hugs and kisses.

"Touya!" She exclaimed. "You made it!"

"Let… GO." He said through his teeth.

"Everyone's down in the lab." Ryou walked up to the pilot and shook his hand.

"Where's Sakura?" Fujitaka looked around for his daughter. "Is she okay?"

"She went back into the city."

"What!? Why!?"

"I don't know! She went crazy and wanted to pick a fight with the aliens!"

"Well why didn't you stop her!?"

"She threatened to hurt me! She picked me up, man! You know how many times that's happened!? Never!"

"Well what about my daughter?" Sonomi asked. "Where's Tomoyo?"

"Yeah, she went with her."

"WHAT!?" She smacked Ryou upside the head. "And you let her!?"

"Hey!"

"And my son?" Yelan suddenly appeared from out of nowhere. "Is Syaoran with them?"

"…Shit."

* * *

"_Last chance, Sakura…_"

"No." Sakura put her hand back, slipping a card in between her fingers.

"_Fine._"

A sharper beam of blue shot out from the hatch towards Sakura but she managed to deflect it with the Shield. Although she was safe from her card's magic, the force behind the alien beam was still strong enough to lower her to the ground. She grit her teeth and held onto the Shield's link with all her might but still found herself beginning to lose her ascension.

"Sakura!" Li called out, slipping out an ofuda.

The intensity of the blue light only grew stronger and continued weighing down on Sakura, who refused to yield. The soldiers on standby drew their weapons but Tomoyo and Li commanded them to stand down.

"Put your weapons away!" Tomoyo ordered. "Sakura, what the hell were you thinking!?"

"What were _we_ thinking?" Li asked as he put his ofuda away and ran towards the location Sakura was lowering to.

* * *

Down in the lab, Fujitaka, Sonomi and Yelan were all busy strangling Ryou with all their might while Keiichiro and the others watched all the action from the computer screen. Worried and confused about what to do, Keiichiro turned over to Ryou.

"Uhh, Ryou?" He started. "Something's happening down there."

"Something's… happening… down _here_!" Ryou strained.

"Uhh… yeah, okay… but…" He quick-glanced over to the monitor once more. "…Remember when you said that if something went wrong, you'd pull Sakura back in?"

"Ack!"

Stupidly, Keiichiro continued nodding along. "…Oookaaaay… so, should I bring them back in or…what?"

"Keiichiro!" Ryou continued to get throttled.

"…Should I help them or help you?"

"Help _me_! Help _me_!"

"…Yeah, okay."

* * *

Despite her best efforts, Sakura's link to the Shield was suddenly broken as she fell to the surface, landing on the rough street. Immediately soon after, Sakura became engulfed in the shimmering blue light and realized she could no longer move. Li and Tomoyo hurried to her side and were soon shrouded by the alien beam as well.

"What's happening!?" Tomoyo shrieked.

"I don't know…" Sakura shook her head.

"Sakura!" Aries shouted as he and the others arrived on the scene.

But it was already too late. Sakura, Li and Tomoyo were already inside the alien ship as the blue light disappeared back into the hatch. Maya and Suki lowered their weapons as Pops tried to focus his mind on the contents of the craft.

"Pops?" Maya turned to the old man. "Anything?"

"Nothing." He shook his head. "They're all blocked off by that ship of theirs."

"No intentions?"

"None that I know of."

"We'll have to get them out." Aries said as he took out a small device from his pocket.

"How?" Suki asked.

"The old fashioned way, of course."

The silver remote in Aries' hand suddenly switched on two blinking yellow lights and one green light. With a satisfied look on his face, the silver-haired alien placed the device back in his coat pocket and turned his attention over to Maya.

"You have the transport powder, I assume." He said.

"Yes, of course." The blond-haired woman nodded as she took out the small brown sack from under her shirt.

"What's that thing you just turned on?" Suki asked.

"It's to prevent them from invading our minds." Aries explained as Maya formed a circle with her magic powder. "Our secrets, our intentions and our presence will be safeguarded so long as the device is on."

As Maya finished up the circle, she joined her friends and held her wand firmly. "Ready? Let's go."


	25. No Mercy

**CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE**

Sakura stepped out of the rejuvenation chamber as it released a cloud of steam and moisture. The skin-tight black suit she wore reflected that of her soul: total darkness. Her eyes had lost their emerald sparkle and were now replaced by an empty gray hue. Kanaye didn't care about her physical appearance, however, because he knew no one would have to see it. As he handed her the cold, steel mask of the Shadow Reaper, a perverse feeling of joy and accomplishment swelled deep within the millionaire businessman.

"What is your name?" He asked her.

"Sakura Kinomoto." She answered, gazing deep into the mask's red lens.

"And where are your friends?"

"I have none. Only enemies."

"And what do you do to your enemies?"

"Kill them."

A flash of light rang out and soon Sakura found herself descending from the catwalk of a high-tech laboratory. The scientists on hand were frightened but Sakura didn't care. Using the Klaw X-2000, provided by Kanaye, Sakura slashed her way through the helpless innocents and stole the information she was ordered to take.

Another flash of light and Sakura was strangling a security guard with the heavy steel gloves over her hands. As the man drew his final breath and rolled his eyes back, Sakura stood up triumphantly and extended the blade from her glove. Before she could finish the job, another flash occurred.

Now Sakura found herself beating her friends to the floor. The guardians were incapacitated, Tomoyo was choking and Meiling was knocked down unconscious. Eriol shot an energy beam towards her but she deflected it with her special weapon. Yet another flash of light and now Sakura found herself beating Li down to a pulp.

She swung her heavily armored fist across his face but he didn't stop coming after her. He was bruised and bloodied but his relentlessness forced her to rethink her actions. The stuffed animal he held out in front of her suddenly brought back all her memories. She could feel the things she thought she had forgotten: friendship, kindness, courage, and above all---love.

"_Your mind is weak, Sakura."_

Sakura suddenly snapped out of her trance and awoke to the sound of the deep, booming voice she heard earlier. The flashbacks felt so real, she thought she was actually reliving those painful memories again. Sakura looked around but all she could see was darkness. She was restrained on an upwards table, her hands shackled by a strange blue energy. She tried to summon one of her cards but something prevented her from doing so. She focused her mind and energy but all she could hear was a beeping noise emanating from the device she suddenly found placed around her head.

"What?" She struggled to break free. "Where am I? What is this?"

"_Don't even try to summon your cards, Sakura." _The voice boomed again. _"They will do you no good so long as that neural inhibitor is placed over you."_

"Am I… Am in a spaceship?"

"_What a cold description for something so extraordinary." _

"Where are you?"

_"Oh, I'm not here. Not yet, anyway. But I will be soon. Once I take over your planet, you'll soon familiarize yourself with my face. That is, if I decide to let you live." _

"You must be Kane Exitir."

"_Why, yes. And you, no doubt, are the great Card Captor Sakura. Defender of Tomoeda, self-proclaimed protector of the earth and guardian of the Sakura Cards." _

"You forgot to mention I'm an all around smart-ass."

"_Why, yes. Of course."_

"What do you want with me?"

_"Perhaps the question is: what do you want with ME? After all, you were the one who provoked me." _

"You know what I want. You can read my mind, can't you?"

_"Ah, yes. You want to try and prevent all this from happening."_

"Is it so much to ask?"

_"Not at all. But who are you to deny me my fun?" _

"So you think slaughtering countless innocents is fun?"

"_Isn't it?"_

"I wouldn't know."

"_Are you sure? Your memories say otherwise."_

"That's different. I was under someone else's control. I wasn't myself."

"_Of course you were, Sakura. If there's one thing that makes us all the same, it's that feeling we get from silencing a person for good."_

"I'm nothing like you."

"_Don't be so sure, Sakura. Deep down that heroic persona you keep so well, there's a killer waiting to come out. And from what I've seen, you enjoyed it."_

"No. I don't kill out of pleasure or for--"

"_To lie is human, Sakura. I forgive you."_

"No."

"_Have fun."_

"What, what are you doing?"

As the alien leader's voice faded from her mind, Sakura could see a dim light in the distance. Slowly but surely, the light increased and revealed what seemed to be a doorway opening up. Three shadowy figures approached the young woman and stepped into the light that immediately shone down on her.

"Who are you?" She squinted her eyes. Without her glasses, Sakura could barely make out the faces of her captors and began to sweat from the pulsating light.

"Sakura Kinomoto. Human." A raspy voice said.

"Magical, kinetic and telepathic abilities." Said another.

Just then, a distant shriek of total and utter pain caught Sakura's attention, making her cringe with fear. The voice was all too familiar to her and she couldn't bear the thought of what was happening to her beloved Li.

"Li…" She said. "What are you doing to him!?"

"What we're about to do to you, Sakura." The alien answered.

"No…"

One of the figures placed the girl's lenses over her eyes and at last, her captor's faces came into clear view. They stared at her with seemingly human faces, the same as Aries', but the look on their eyes told her they were about to do something to her that was totally inhuman.

"You can see us better, yes?"

"Unfortunately."

"Good."

Another flash of white light blinded Sakura but this time it wasn't from another mental break-in. One of the Valdorian's fists slammed into the young woman's face, breaking her nose almost instantly. Woozy, Sakura looked up only to be hit across the face once more. Now she noticed her nose was broken for sure as it trickled blood onto the floor at a steady pace. Another punch and her left eye was beginning to swell but neither a single wail of pain or a hint of a whimper came from her mouth. The captives didn't care, however, as they continued to mercilessly beat Sakura and laugh from the sick pleasure they were getting from it.

* * *

In another holding cell, Li squirmed in pain and released bloodcurdling screams of pure agony. The alien holding him captive simply sat across from the table and grinned at the sight of Li tossing around, jerking his head back and forth as the music continued filling the room.

_§ Every rose has its thorn._

_Just like every night has its dawn._

_Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song._

_Yeah, he does. §_

"NO!" Li shouted. "TURN IT OFF! TURN IT OFF!"

_§ I listen to our favorite song playin' on the radio._

_Hear the DJ say love's a game of_

_Easy come and easy go. _

_But I wonder does he know_

_Has he ever felt like this? §_

"NO HE HASN'T! NOW TURN THE GODDAMN MUSIC OFF!" Li's face was now turning red.

_§ Every rose has its thorn._

_Just like every night has its dawn._

_Just like every cowboy sings his sad, sad song._

_Yeah, he does. §_

Li was now losing consciousness from the sheer unmerciful pain he was receiving from his inhuman captor. He then tried to slip out an ofuda but the neural inhibitor placed around his head prevented him from unleashing his magic attack.

"D-damn…" He stammered.

* * *

In her own cell, Tomoyo sat on a table without any restraints whatsoever while her captive began to assemble his means of torture. He and the others figured since she was just a normal human being, devoid of any magical ability, she posed no threat. While the alien pieced together his implements of pain, Tomoyo conversed with him casually unafraid and taking the time to notice all the sharp objects.

"…And so after that, we found out this Void card or what have you was actually behind all the strange disappearances in Tomoeda. But it was all good. We did the play about halfway until the bitch struck again and erased almost everyone who was there. That was annoying, I can tell you! So anyway, Meiling and I got erased and my memory after that is a little fuzzy but the next thing I know, I'm back on the ground and it's morning and Li and Sakura have already hooked up. So needless to say Meiling and I were happy for them but Touya, Sakura's big brother? That's another story! He always hated Li but after all these years, he's started to mellow out but I think it's gonna be harder for him to consider him his brother-in-law now that Li and Sakura are getting married now but I think after this, he'll be warming up to Nakuru next and then--Wow, that's a big sharp thingy! Where does _that_ go!? Whoa, mama! That's awesome! Anyways, where was I?"

While Tomoyo talked and talked and talked, the Valdorian just kept to his machinations, actually rolling his eyes in disbelief from the girl's constant chatting. When he was done, he turned around and showed Tomoyo his machine that had an elaborate drill-bit head and two prods that stuck out, used to split open his victim's skull.

"Oh my God…" Tomoyo's jaw dropped. "…Do I get a candy bar after this?"

* * *

In the corridors of the ship, Aries led Maya, Pops and Suki around the various steel corners as Li's screams blared over the ship's humming engines.

"That sounds like Li." Maya whispered. "Poor bloke. I can't imagine the kind of torture they're submitting him to."

"He's a strong boy." Pops said. "He'll hold out long enough for us to get there."

"So what do we do?" Suki turned to Aries.

"We'll need to get a passkey from one of the guards then find our way into the holding cells." He responded. "I doubt they can hold out much longer."

* * *

Another set of punches across Sakura's face caused the girl to drop her head from all the dizziness but one of the Valdorians wouldn't allow it. He grabbed her by the chin and pressed his fist right between her eyes. After a while, they began to tire and stepped back from the girl, who was dripping blood and too swollen to even move.

"I think she's dead." One of the aliens said.

But she wasn't. Though it pained her, Sakura lifted her head up high and spat out a mouthful of blood onto the floor with a certain twinkle in her eye.

"Is that all you've got, you pansies?" She managed to say with her busted lips.

* * *

As the Valdorian fell dead to the floor, Maya tossed the passkey over to Aries, who in turn slid it through the door before him. After a few blinking lights beeped softly, the doors slid open and led them into one of the holding cells. As they entered, they were surprised to see a dead Valdorian hunched over his own weapon and Tomoyo sitting patiently on the table with her usual, casual smile.

"Oh, hello." She said. "I didn't know you guys were mounting a rescue attempt."

"Tomoyo?" Suki said in disbelief. "But how did--"

"He blinked."

"Brilliant." Maya smiled, picking up the dead alien's weapon and handing it over to Tomoyo. "Here, you might need this."

"Yeah, good idea."

"Well, then." Aries grinned. "Shall we save Sakura and Li?"


	26. Escape From Darkness

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX**

The Valdorian operating the radio player fell dead before Maya, whose wand was smoking with a magic residue. Suki and Aries hurried over to Li and removed the straps that were binding him to the table and helped the young man to his feet. He groaned in pain but managed to regain his balance before rushing over to the dead alien and kicking its dead corpse around in spite.

"Play Poison to me, will you!?" Li growled as he continued kicking the corpse around. "I hate that damn song!"

"Are you okay, son?" Pops checked the boy's face for any bruises or scars. "You don't look like you're in any pain."

"No but any more of that music and I'm sure my ears would have started to bleed. Where's Sakura?"

"She's next on our list." Tomoyo replied with a grin.

"What? You should have gone to her first!"

"Let's go." Aries started to lead them out of the ship. "Time is short."

* * *

Sakura's arms remained hanging on the shackles as the rest of her body slumped over the floor in a puddle of blood. Her face was badly bruised and her nose was crushed but her spirit remained intact. As the Valdorians continued to mercilessly beat her to a pulp, the young woman kept egging them on and ignored the pain that was swelling throughout her body.

"…You going… soft on me… punk?" Sakura said out of breath as more and more blood trickled from her mouth.

"Something's not right." A worn out Valdorian said to his comrades.

"It's like she's almost enjoying it." Said another.

"_What's the matter, Sakura? Why don't you get up and fight them? Kill each and every one of them like you would anyone else."_

"No, Exitir." She closed her eyes.

"_And why not?"_

"Because you wish it."

"_Very well… finish her."_

The Valdorians heard their master's command and nodded, taking out a high-tech gun from their holsters. As they loaded the energy cartridges, Sakura got up on her feet in a daze and started laughing.

"Oh, you guys…" She said, spitting out another mouthful of blood. "You're in trouble now."

Using all her might, Sakura pulled away from the table and managed to tear off the shackles that restrained her. With her free hands, she then removed the neural inhibitor from her brow and tossed it aside before coming face to face with her captors and displaying a mischievous grin.

"How the--" The Valdorian was cut off as he was thrown against his fellow men.

"Simple." Sakura said as her injuries started to heal. "I fused with the Power card before I got zapped in. I figured if whatever machinery you guys use can cut me off from my cards, you couldn't do it if I was already fused with one. So suck on _that_!"

"_You fools!" _Exitir growled. _"Must I do everything!?" _

An explosion of light and crackling electricity filled the halls of the ship, exposing Aries and the others to the wandering patrolmen. An alarm then sounded as they loaded their plasma rifles and opened fire as Suki shielded herself and her crew with an enchanted fan. The fan let off a hazy green mist and acted as a barrier between the group and the aliens' rapid gunfire.

"What the hell just happened!?" The Japanese woman shrieked. "Tomoyo, please tell me you didn't--"

"I didn't do anything, I swear!" Tomoyo pleaded.

"Look, forget about it!" Li said as he released a fire attack towards the oncoming alien fleet. "We have to find Sakura!"

The wall behind them suddenly came bursting out as several Valdorians keeled over in pain. Through the clouds of steam emitting from the ship's internal systems, Sakura walked through and waved at her friends.

"Oh there you guys are!" She said with a smile. "Listen, I don't know about you but I think we've overstayed our welcome."

"My thoughts exactly, mistress." Aries nodded as he pointed across the hall. "I think you'll find that this is the way out."

"Then we'd better get moving."

"You're not going anywhere." A familiar voice boomed through the blaring sirens.

Sakura slowly turned around and saw a tall, thin figure approaching her through the gray steam, black shadows and flashing red lights. Aries suddenly felt his stomach turn and stepped towards Sakura, shielding her away from the man.

"No." He said. "You won't harm her. Not so long as I'm here."

"Very well."

The figure swung his arm and tossed Aries aside, where Pops and Suki were able to help him to his feet. Sakura gulped and pulled out a card but was immediately halted as the man grabbed her by the neck and summoned her forth.

"We'll have none of that, Sakura." Exitir said as he came face to face with the girl.

Sakura said nothing as her eyes remained fixed on Kane's devilishly maroon retinas and pale bald face. His lips were thin and had a lavender tinge to them while the right side of his face displayed a lengthy red scar that ran from the top of his brow to the bottom of his chin. The black gloves that choked her matched the rest of his shiny outfit that, when placed in the light, looked like a distilled oil spill complete with rainbow hue.

"You came here for a reason. Why?"

"I… already told you." Sakura struggled through his grasp.

"And you should have listened to Aries. And because of your foolishness, you and your friends will suffer a fate worse than death."

"You mean you're sending us to Wisconsin!?" Tomoyo panicked. "No, please! Anything but that!"

"Tomoyo, hush!" Li moved her aside as he unleashed another fire attack.

Kane dropped Sakura to the floor and absorbed the fire with his velvet-strapped glove and formed it into a concentrated ball of fury. Then with the use of his mental powers, he shot it towards the young man but Suki's magic fan came in handy once again, deflecting the blast.

"I hate magicians." The alien leader said as more of his men came running up behind him. "Kill them all. Show no mercy."

"Party time." Sakura said as she fused with the Freeze.

Walls of ice raised from the ground and bought the crew some time as they hurried along the blaring red corridors of the ship. When the ice shattered to the floor, the Valdorians pursued them with haste. Exitir slowly walked behind, knowing they didn't stand a chance if they escaped or not.

Aries led the group around a corner and noticed a magnetically sealed door before them with a computer panel standing beside it. As the Valdorians came closer, they opened fire once again but Sakura used the Shield to throw them back.

"You hold them off while I open the door!" Aries said as he rushed over to the computer.

"Don't take too long!" Suki shouted back as she put her fan away and released a pair of daggers.

The Japanese mage twirled her weapons around and charged them with a magic energy before cutting down several Valdorians to the floor. With each Valdorian that fell by Suki's blades, their insides bursted and mouths foamed with a dark purple liquid.

"Gross, they've got purple blood!" Tomoyo said as she knocked a Valdorian to the floor with its own weapon.

Sakura used the Light card to distract several patrolmen then brought them down with the power of the Shot while Li simply slashed through his enemies with the use of his golden blade.

"Aries, are you done yet!?" Maya called back as she shielded herself and Pops from several plasma blasts.

"Almost there, hang on!" The alien said as his fingers quickly ran along the keys of the complicated machine.

After a few beeps and three flashes of blue light, a loud humming rang out across the hall, indicating the doors were now opening.

"Everyone into the room! We have a few seconds before they close the doors again!" Aries called out.

As everyone did as they were told, Suki remained fighting off the oncoming Valdorians and turned back to them. "You guys go ahead! I'll keep them busy!"

"Suki, we're not leaving without you!" Sakura shouted back.

"Go, damn it! Now!"

The doors suddenly became engulfed in a magic red haze and sealed shut, cutting Sakura and the others off from Suki. Sakura pounded and pounded on the doors but Aries turned the young woman away, leading her and the rest of the group over to an air hangar.

"Goodbye, my friends." Suki said as she lowered her hand from the doors and faced the dozen Valdorians who stood in front of her with their loaded weapons.

"Surrender now, human." The commanding officer demanded.

"You'll have to kill me first."

"Very well."

Several shots rang out but Suki was fast enough to deflect the white bolts of energy with her magic daggers. As more and more blasts came her way, her speed intensified but when a stray bolt of energy hit her arm, the game was over. Suki fell to the floor and was bombarded by several plasma blasts coming from the alien weaponry. When the barrage ended, the commanding officer turned Suki's seemingly dead body around and noticed she was still barely breathing and displayed a satisfied smile on her face.

"You still live?" The officer growled.

"Not for long…" She whispered as she pulled out a fully charged dagger from her pouch. "…And neither will you, I'm afraid."

"What!?"

"…Boom."

The entire section of the ship soon exploded, killing everyone who stood before the sealed doors including Suki Moriko. Inside the air hangar, Sakura and her friends could hear the explosion as only a faint rumble but they all knew deep down what had happened.

"Suki's dead." Tomoyo trembled. "…Isn't she?"

Aries bowed his head before hurrying over to a shrouded object that stood on a circular platform. The alien removed the black sheet and revealed a medium sized spacecraft that resembled that of a jet fighter and sports car rolled into one.

"Holy Moses…" Pops whistled in fascination as he ran his hand along the vehicle's shiny black exterior. "…What do you plan to do with this thing?"

"Mass produce them." Aries said as he turned over to Maya. "Ms. Elaine, if you'll please…"

"What?" Maya scratched her head before realizing it was time to go. "Oh, right. The powder."

As Maya drew a circle around her friends and the black spacecraft, Sakura looked back at the door to the hangar as it started to creak and bend.

"They're coming." Sakura said.

"And we're leaving." Maya responded as she and the others vanished in a white light.

Exitir and his men rushed through the broken doors and stood around an empty air hangar, filled only with several fighter crafts. He turned his head and noticed his special prototype fighter was also gone, balling his fists in anger.

"Damn." He said under his breath. "Never mind. Once the countdown reaches zero, no one will stand a chance."

"What do we do now, sir?" A Valdorian asked his commanding officer.

"Spread the word, Captain. Load every pilot in their respective aircraft and prepare for the time invasion. No one will come out of this alive."

"Yes, sir."

As the Valdorians left their leader alone in the room, Exitir pulled out one of Suki's burned daggers from his pocket and examined it closely.

"You humans are such fools. And you magicians are even worse." He said before getting an idea. "…But perhaps there could be an advantage to having a magician on my side. And if Sakura won't join me… then perhaps _he _will."


	27. Old

**CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN**

After the away team's arrival back in the lab, a frustrated Meiling went running up to Sakura with a few questions in mind. Fujitaka, Sonomi and Yelan followed the young woman close behind, hoping to get some answers of their own.

"What was the point of all that!?" Meiling blurted. "Is this your way of saying 'hi there!' to the nasty aliens who want to kill us!?"

"I thought I could dig up some information from them." Sakura shrugged as she noticed her father standing there. "Dad?"

"Sakura." He sighed. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, I guess."

"Mom?" Tomoyo and Li said in unison to their respective mothers.

"Thank God you're all right." Sonomi wrapped her arms around her daughter.

"They couldn't touch me." She smiled. "I was too quick for them."

"Syaoran?" Yelan placed a hand on her son's face, noticing his almost pale complexion. "Are you okay?"

"They… they tortured me for little while but… I made it through." He said, almost trembling.

"What did they do to you?"

"They… They strapped me down and they…" Li bit his lip. "…They played Poison's '_Every Rose Has Its Thorn' _over and over again."

"No." She wrapped her arms around her son. "My poor baby!"

"…It's okay, Ma." 

A distraught Maya hurried into Marvin's arms and let out a small sob. "Oh, Marvin…"

"Hey, what's the matter?" The magician asked as he stroked his wife's golden mane.

"It's Suki."

"Huh?" He looked around, noticing she wasn't there.

"Where's Suki?" Jimmy asked Pops, who removed his hat in respect and remained silent. "Pops, where's… Suki?"

"She didn't make it." Sakura sighed, heading to the back of the laboratory.

"Lord have mercy."

"I'm sorry." Aries said to the group of magicians.

"These guys mean business, huh?" Ichigo turned to Li, who was concerned about his fiancée at the moment.

"We shouldn't tread on it any longer." He said as he followed after Sakura. "We've wasted too much time already."

"Li's right." Pops nodded. "Suki would want us to keep fighting."

"And that's what we're going to do." Said Aries.

Rally noticed the shiny, sleek alien aircraft parked behind the alien and whistled in amazement. "Now what is _that_?"

"It's a Scorpion class fighter pod. Every tanker ship across the planet is storing full armadas of these, waiting for the right time to attack." 

"And what's this one doing here?" Motoko asked as she ran her hand along the tinted windshield.

"We'll need it if we're going to defend ourselves from Kane's wrath. Where is Ryou?"

The young scientist was across the room, examining the timer probe against his computer monitor and Kaolla's laptop with Kero and Suppi hovering over their shoulders.

"What are you doing?" Kero asked.

"Something's really weird." Ryou replied.

"You gotta be more specific than that. After tonight, weird could mean anything."

"Damn it!" Touya furiously reentered the lab. "Look who we found stowed away on the Knight One!"

Suddenly, Yue and Ruby flew Takashi, Chiharu, Naoko and Rika into the room as they chuckled nervously and waved at their friends.

"Hi, guys." Takashi gulped. "How's it going?"

"Aw, you see what I mean?" Kero pouted. "Weird."

"What the hell are you guys doing here!?" Eriol demanded to know.

The girls all pointed at Takashi. "It's _his_ fault!"

"What, more magicians?" Naru scratched her head.

"No." Eriol shook his head. "Just some friends of ours from school."

"Finally!" Keitaro let out a heavy sigh of relief. "I'm no longer the lowest life form in this hellhole!"

"Who the hell is this?" Takashi pointed at a blissful Keitaro before looking at all the various heroes cooped up in the otherwise spacious laboratory.

"What's with the monkey?" He pointed at Pudding.

"That's no monkey." Zakuro butt in. "That's Pudding Fong. She's a friend of mine."

"Oh my God!" Chiharu gasped as her eyes got all starry. "You're Zakuro Fujiwara the model!"

"Wait a minute!" Naoko immediately recognized who they were talking to. "You're Tokyo Mew Mew!"

"Yup." Pudding winked. "And we're back in action!"

"Takashi!" Eriol tried to get back on the subject. "Can you please tell me why you and the others haven't evacuated like everyone else?"

"We wanted to help you." He smiled. "Y'know, in case things get way out of control."

"Actually, I think they've got enough help." Chiharu pointed at all the magicians standing about, prepping themselves for battle.

"That can't be your only reason." Eriol doubtfully said. "Something's up."

"And I think I know what." Yue said as he entered with a duct-taped Mr. Terada.

"Oh yeah!" Takashi laughed. "I knew we forgot something!"

"OWWW!" The teacher said as Yue removed the tape from his mouth. "Untie me now, you winged angel of death! Takashi! You little bastard! When I get out of here, your ass is mine!"

"Yeah, you know what?" Takashi began as he duct-taped his teacher's mouth again. "Let's leave this on for now. He needs to calm down."

"Why did you bring Terada?" Ruby asked.

"Hey, we're just looking out for our friends!"

"MFMFMGGRFFM!" Terada mumbled through the duct tape.

"Aw." Naoko hugged her former teacher. "No need to thank us!"

In the back of the laboratory, Sakura sat at a desk with her head hanging low as Li, Tomoyo and Ichigo slowly approached her.

"Sakura?" Li put his hand on her shoulder. "Are you okay? How do you feel?"

Sakura lifted her head up and stared into nothingness before turning over to her friends. With half a smile she sighed and shrugged, thinking over Li's question.

"How do I feel?" She repeated the question. "Well let's see… there's a group of men out there I haven't seen in almost seven years and they want to kill me. Show me an alien race who would be happy to help them, topped with the threat of global conquest and annihilation. I'm weeks away from getting married and I think of the life I had and the one I _could_ have… but might not. How do I feel?"

Sakura paused as she took out her glasses and examined the broken lenses. "I feel… _old_. Worn out."

"Sakura, you're only 20." A confused Li said.

"Yeah." Tomoyo nodded. "I mean it wasn't long ago we were just a bunch of kids and--"

"Tomoyo, I stopped being a kid the day I opened up that book and released those cards." Sakura interrupted. "I've had a lot of growing up to do since then. I've been through so much. We all have. And I know there are times when you feel like I do now."

Tomoyo, Li and Ichigo exchanged glances and nodded before the Mew girl took a seat net to her friend. "Yeah, I know how you feel. I was just an ordinary girl without a care in the world. Next thing I know, I've got superhuman strength and agility, sprouting cat ears and a tail. Life's pretty random at times, you know what I mean?"

"So what now?" Li asked. "I mean we can't just sit around and wait for those bastards to start trashing the planet."

"We're in way over our heads this time." Sakura sighed. "I think I can honestly I don't know what we're going to do."

"Aries, you had a plan." Tomoyo turned around. "What is it?"

"It's a bit complicated." The alien said as he walked over to the group. "So much has happened in the short time since I arrived."

"What do you mean?"

"It's Sakura." 

"What about me?" She asked.

"Your telepathic abilities have been corrupted, haven't they?"

"Aries, I don't understand what you're talking about."

"Kane invaded your mind, didn't he? He forced you into seeing things you didn't want to see again. Memories of a dark past you can't tell the public."

"What does that have to do with anything?"

"I'm saying that unless you learn to erase those memories from your past and move on, my plan may not work out after all."

"What plan, Aries!?" Sakura was starting to lose her patience. "We've been going around in circles, getting distracted or attacked by some asshole in a cloak! Now just tell me what it is I have to do so we can end this war and go home!"

The alien sighed and sat next to the young woman. "Very well."

Sakura then raised an eyebrow as she saw the man take out a slim, black remote. He lifted a flap on the device, pressed a few keys and activated a small blinking red light.

"This is a dimension jumper, Sakura." Aries began to explain. "Exitir has a few more of these tucked away in the transmissions of some of his tanker ships much like the one we escaped from. This, of course, is a smaller model built for a limited amount of passengers."

Sakura then gazed at the black spacecraft parked across the room and looked down suspiciously. "Where is this going, Aries? What are you asking me to do?"

"I need you and a small away team to cross the dimensional tear across time and space to retrieve three important objects."

"What kind of objects?"

"Ones that will ensure our victory over Exitir and his army of rogues."

"And what makes me the only one fit to lead this mission?"

"Crossing dimensions takes a severe amount of mental stability. Focus and concentration are vital when traveling through the tear. You will enter a realm of pure illusion that is connected to your memory. A realm of your fondest memories, your hopes, ambitions or quite possibly one made up entirely of your biggest fears. You must be able to separate between what is real, what is not and what may never happen in your life. Then, and only then, will you able to advance towards your destination."

"And where would that be?" 

"An alternate Tomoeda. An alternate Earth, to be exact. Things there will not be as they seem here. There _will _be differences."

"Like what?"

The alien glanced at Li and shook his head. "If you take on this mission, you'll soon find out."

Back over at the enormous computer screen, Ryou and Kaolla came to a shocking realization. The two bumped heads as they neared the monitor then double checked with the timer probe's time position.

"Touya, I think you might want to see this!" Ryou called out to the pilot.

"What is it?" Touya came running over as Yue transformed back into Yuki.

"Look at this." He pointed at the screen, which displayed a highly detailed map of the world.

"Yeah, so?"

"The signal we have been picking up on our computers seems to be emitting from the probe Meiling found." Kaolla explained. "There are more signals scattered across the globe but only one of them matches the one we have here."

"Which could mean that there's another probe out there exactly like this one." Ryou concurred. "And if I'm reading this right… the other probe is in Hawaii."

"What the hell?" Yuki slapped his forehead. "What's so special about these particular probes?"

"Yuki…" Touya suddenly remembered something. "Do you remember that day we were in the air when that freak meteor shower came out of nowhere?"

"I remember it made me sick to my stomach."

"That was just debris flying past us. Its real course was for Hawaii."

**The USS Nimitz**

The skies were darker than ever now that the alien ship had made its full emergence from the storm clouds and remained hanging over the entire body of water. The crew of the Nimitz remained on deck of the ship as they continued making radio contact with the base.

"Why the hell don't they respond?" General Armstrong grew impatient.

"There's too much interference, sir." One of the officers replied.

"Keep trying."

"The President said they might not be a threat." Captain Yelland remembered aloud.

"Yeah? Well that was before he had a panic attack and took a shit all over our flag. Remember that part?"

"We can't just sit around in the water. I'm sure they'd want us to return to base."

"Then that's what we'll do. Let's turn this boat around."

But before a course of action could be made, the ship began to shake and toss its crew over to the side. The Captain slowly got up from the floor and crouched over his desk, looking out the window in shock.

"Oh good God…" He gasped at the sight before him.

The front hull of the ship began to slide open, emitting its blue light towards the aircraft carrier. Everyone in the bridge of the ship placed their hands over their eyes, blocking out the intensity of the light and watched as the alien craft continued to open its hatches. More and more devices pulled out from the back of the black tank and came together, forming what appeared to be several types of weapons.

The captain simply gulped. "Looks like we're in trouble, after all."


	28. Departure

**CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT**

Everyone finally came together and formed a massive huddle around Sakura as they observed a map of the world projected on the large computer screen. Ryou pressed a few keys and marked all the territories where an alien tanker was hovering above them. Not a single region was left unoccupied.

"As you can probably tell, we're up diarrhea drive without a paddle." Sakura began. "According to this map, Hawaii is the only other territory besides us that has the same coded frequency embedded in this countdown."

"How much longer do we have now?" Li asked Meiling.

"I, uhh…" She stammered as she tried looking at the timer probe. "…Ooh, uhh… wow, let me see…"

"Not very long." Aries finally answered for her. "Approximately one hour. Then the invasion will begin."

"I thought you said they weren't planning to attack once the timer goes off." Rally said.

"They'll attack. But not in this timeline."

"So _now_ you figure out what they're about to do!?"

"Forgive me. I should have been able to figure it out sooner but so far, all of Exitir's moves have been sporadic. He's trying to throw me off track to prevent me from helping you."

"So what makes you think he isn't doing it again right now with this egg-shaped thing?" Zakuro asked the alien.

"We have no choice but to follow his instincts, Zakuro." Sakura took charge again. "Touya, I need you and Yuki to head to your posts on the Nimitz. Open their eyes. Make them see what's going on and prevent them from doing anything stupid."

"Are you crazy!?" Touya protested. "The Nimitz is probably stuck in the middle of the ocean! I've no doubt they've already sent a rescue chopper to rescue them."

"I don't think so, Touya." Yuki shook his head. "We've already suffered tons of power failure around here, I'm sure they've experienced over there as well. Without any radio contact, they're probably stranded."

"Isn't the Nimitz an air carrier?" Li asked.

"Yes but I'm sure they're grounded for the moment. I guess we'll have to load up and bring them back here."

"Wait a minute!" Nakuru stepped in. "What if you guys don't make it back in time and they start attacking us! We'll need Yue for some backup!"

"Nakuru, we have an _army_!" Touya griped at her. "The loss of one player isn't going to make any difference!"

"The Knight One will only be shot down if you decide to take it." Maya said as she handed Yuki a small sack. "You better go via the transport powder. It'll take you where you need to go."

"Thanks." Yuki nodded.

Sakura then turned to the rest of her army. "We're going to split up into factions and cover as much ground as we can. If they attack, and they _will_, keep them busy. I'll try to be back as soon as I can."

"Wait, where are you going?" Fujitaka asked. "Sakura, don't do anything crazy."

"Well you know me, dad. I can't seem to help it these days." She then turned to Aries. "You're sure you know what you're doing?"

"Of course." The alien nodded. "I've already taken the schematics of the Scorpion fighter and uploaded them into Ryou's computer. We'll use them to help us build a small fleet for ourselves."

"You can do that?" She asked Ryou.

"Hell yeah, I can do it! I'm a goddamn genius!" Ryou exclaimed proudly. "You just be careful in there!"

Sakura nodded with a smile. "Right. Aries?"

"So long as you keep the Return card activated, you'll have a greater chance of withstanding whatever it is the dimension jump will throw at you."

"Then let's do this." Li said as he and Tomoyo walked over to the Scorpion pod.

"Tomoyo? Li?" Sakura now had a lump in her throat. "Are you sure you want to do this?"

"I'm not sure of anything anymore, Sakura. But I know I'm not going to leave your side at a time like this. I promised to marry you and by God, I'm not going to let you down."

"Damn straight!" Jimmy preached on. "You tell her, boy!"

**The Demon Realm**

Kanaye remained shackled to the stone figure behind him while a couple of gray-skinned demons stood guard. The ex-businessman struggled to break free by using his powerful armor but the Dark Lord stopped him in his tracks.

"Trying to escape?" He asked. "It's no use, Kanaye. Even with _your_ machinery, you can't break through a spellbound lock. Why do you think I let you keep your armor on?"

"What do you want with me, Faust?" The 46 year old gave up. "Are you going to kill me? Then kill me!"

"No, no. I'll let you have your fun first. It's only fair."

"Then let me go!"

"My, what a temperamental sort." Aram Fingle said as he materialized behind his master. "What ever shall we do with you?"

"Tell me, Kanaye." Faust crouched down before his prisoner. "Are you a god-fearing man? Huh? Is there some sort of sin you're longing to be forgiven for?"

"Go to hell." He spat.

"Been there, done that. Maybe your loyalty will show once we cleanse your soul! Aram? If you'll please…"

"My pleasure, lord." Aram grinned as he placed his hand over Kanaye's jerking head and closed his eyes before chanting. "_Vultus en vestri animus quod paeniteo vestri plurimus malum de pecados_!"

"NO!" Kanaye's face winced as a sharp pain rang out through his skull.

"_Illud vos nefas quod illud vos iuguolo paeniteo iam_!"

Kanaye screamed some more as he closed his eyes and looked deep within his soul. A stream of fire and a fountain of blood overshadowed several images of Kanaye's past as they played out in his mind. He could see the damages his company had done to the environment, the number of homes relocated or torn down because of his greed. Amidst the mixture of burning death and bloodshed, Kanaye could then see Sakura fall to her death and rise up again as a cold blooded killer. The pain in all her loved one's hearts could be felt throbbing within Kanaye as he finally opened his eyes to a new light.

Aram and Faust stood over a seemingly brain dead Kanaye, who muttered incomprehensible phrases from his mouth. His face was now pale and sweaty as his eyes remained open and diluted, staring out into nothingness.

"Is he dead?" Faust asked.

"No." Aram grinned. "But right now he wishes he was."

"He is of no use to us now. Send him back home. Let him enjoy what little of his life he has left."

"And what of these so-called aliens hovering above the earth?"

"Let them do all the work for us. Afterwards, we'll consider a partnership if I decide to let them live."

**The Lab**

Touya and Yukito waved goodbye to their friends and family as they vanished from within the magic circle beneath them.

"All right, Eriol." Sakura said to her friend. "You're in charge. Ichigo will be your 2nd in command."

"Yes!" Ichigo exclaimed. "I mean… uhh… cool."

Tomoyo quickly hurried over to Eriol and peppered his face with kisses while saying her goodbyes. "You be careful! I want to get married too someday!"

"Of course, darling." He said before placing his mouth over hers one last time.

"Tomoyo, I beg you!" Sonomi pleaded. "Don't do this!"

"Mother?" She said with a gleam in her eye. "Cut the crap."

As Sakura started the engine of the Scorpion, she gave one last look at Aries and smiled. "Thanks for everything, Aries."

"Don't thank me just yet, mistress." He bowed.

As Keiichiro pressed the buttons on the pad, the ramp doors opened and gave clearance for the alien aircraft. The top hatch of the Scorpion closed shut and hissed before Sakura maneuvered the controls forward and approached the ramp. In no time at all, the Scorpion blasted off into the dark sky carrying the only three people who would soon determine the fate of the world.

* * *

**_HAPPY HOLIDAYS EVERYONE!!!_**


	29. Zero Hour

**CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE**

**30 minutes till Zero Hour**

The Scorpion flyer bolted through the dark skies above the snow-covered Tomoeda. As Sakura piloted the vehicle, Tomoyo and Li looked out the tinted window from the backseat. The damage was in plain view but luckily, no one lingered around to get hurt.

"Looks like the city evacuated just in time." Li said.

"The aliens." Tomoyo started. "Can they see us?"

"No. I've switched on the cloaking device Aries provided me with. They won't even be able to pick us up on their radar." Sakura answered.

"How did you learn to pilot this thing? You haven't even passed your driver's test yet!"

"Yeah, well… shut up!"

"What are we looking for?" Li asked.

"A way in. Aries said once we hit zero hour, the time portals should open. That's when we use the dimension jumper and enter the pockets of alternate reality."

"And from there?"

"Aries said there were three things to look for." Tomoyo remembered. "What were they?"

Sakura looked at the computer screen near the pilot controls and switched it on. The screen displayed three different objects in a grid view, outlining their description and schematics.

"According to Aries, several Valdorian ships are already placed in some of the dimensions we'll be visiting." Sakura explained. "He said Exitir wanted to be thorough in his destruction of humanity even if it meant destroying every possible reality imaginable. So Aries scattered these objects throughout all these pockets and hid them from Exitir."

"What are they?" Li asked as he studied the monitor.

"One of them is a disk that contains a coded frequency that will disable the defenses on Exitir's ship. Once that goes down, all the others will follow."

"What else?"

"Some kind of remote detonator that'll close the time portals and prevent any more ships from disrupting the timeline."

"Will we feel the effects?"

"I don't think so. Aries said that the only way that could happen is if the portals close once they've fulfilled their mission. If we manage to stop them in time and reverse the damage, everything will be fine."

"And how are we going to do that?"

"With the 3rd object we need. But in order to get that one, we'll have to dig a bit deeper."

* * *

Inside the laboratory, Eriol was rounding up the magicians as they gathered their weapons and suited for battle. Maya gave her wand a few flicks and tested the potency of her magic before finally placing it in her belt buckle. Marvin placed his lucky deck of cards into his top hat and detracted his own wand into his white sleeve then put his arm around Maya.

"I'm not going to let anything happen to you." He said softly.

"We'll be fine, love." She said before kissing him on the cheek.

Pops and Jimmy approached the two and waited patiently with them for the rest of the magic army to regroup in the center of the lab. Near the main computer, Ryou and Keiichiro were already preparing for the oncoming attack by firing the transporter's engines and leaving it on standby.

"Okay, that's it!" Ryou said. "We'll have transporter range throughout the entire globe! Once those alien bastards start spreading, we'll be able to follow them anywhere!"

"All right then!" Eriol got everyone's attention as they all faced him. "We'll have to split into teams in order to cover more ground and ensure their safety. I'll be sending field agents with their teams out into the cities that are in most danger. I'll remain here in Tokyo with Ichigo, Aries, Spinel, Keitaro and Naru."

"Cool." Ichigo beamed.

"WHAT!? NO!" Keitaro wailed. "Naru, you can't be serious! This guy's a--"

_**WHACK!  
**_

"Shut up!" Naru commanded her husband as he lay dizzy on the floor.

Eriol then continued. "Maya, you'll be heading out to London with Marvin, Mew Lettuce and Mew Zakuro."

"Very well." Maya nodded.

"Jimmy will be leading a team into Dallas, Texas with Rally and May while Pops will take Ruby, Kitsune and Mutsumi with him to Kenya."

Pops looked at his teammates and bowed. "We'll do our best."

"Meiling will take Kero and Motoko amongst others with her to Shanghai."

"Then I'll go as well." Yelan said as she stepped forward. "I'll have my daughters rendezvous with us there."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes."

"What about me, Eriol?" Kaho asked.

"Ms. Mizuki…" Eriol continued. "You'll be heading to Moscow with Shinobu, Kaolla and Mew Pudding."

"What?"

Pudding, Shinobu and Kaolla all jumped up with excitement. "YAAAAAY!!!!"

"Ah, shit." Kaho looked down. "Why am _I_ stuck with the kids?"

"Hey, don't think you're doing this without _us_!" Takashi said as he and the girls approached the group.

"We are." Eriol told him. "There's no need for you to interfere."

"But why? We want to help."

"I understand. But you're powerless and--"

"So are _they_!" Chiharu pointed to Rally and May.

"Yeah and what about _them_!?" Naoko pointed out to the Hinata residents. "They're just a bunch of college students! What good could they possibly be!?"

"Not to mention those kindergarteners Kaho's taking with her." Rika joked.

"Hey!" Shinobu, Kaolla and Pudding whined.

**The Demon Realm - 00:16:35**

Faust stood at the top of the black pillar as it raised from the ground in a cloud of black smoke. As he held the Orb of Osiris up into the violet sky, bolts of lightning flashed from his hand and hit the ground with a tremendous force. Soon the ground began to crack and split into different sections, releasing several bursts of fire and ash that gave birth to Faust's new demon army. The Demon Knights saddled onto their dead horses and flew around the area, awaking the new legion as Fingle read from the demonic manuscript he held in his hand.

"They are awakening, my lord." The Blood Ring priest grinned. "And soon they'll be ready to retake what is yours."

"That they will." Faust grinned before he sensed something unfamiliar to him. "What is that?"

"What my lord?"

"You don't sense it? It's as if--"

"_As if somebody's watching you_?" Exitir's voice rang in his ear.

"What?" Faust looked around for the voice before the alien warlord appeared before him in a bright light.

"Hello, Johann." Exitir smiled at the man.

"Who are you? How did you--"

"There are many things I am capable of." He interrupted him. "Things that don't need much explaining."

"Knights!"

The four blazing riders heard their master's call and charged towards the alien leader. Calmly, Exitir turned to his side and with a swift punch, was able to knock down all four of the riders without blinking an eye.

"What?" Faust was stunned as he backed away. "Lorca!"

The Black Knight rampaged over to the pillar and pounced on the alien. As Lorca growled and attempted to strangle his opponent, Exitir simply grinned.

"Having fun, Christopher?"

"Die…" Lorca hissed through his black flames.

Exitir simply grabbed hold of Lorca's demonic hands and released a severe amount of pain into the Demon Knight, bringing him to his knees.

"Now enough of this." Kane continued.

"Might I have your name before I crush you?" Faust prepared to fight.

"I didn't come here looking for a fight." Exitir said. "Incidentally, my name is Kane Exitir. I am not from your world."

"Yes…" Faust nodded. "I was warned of your presence by one of your own."

"Ah, you mean Aries." He shook his head. "By definition, he is of the same race as I. But he is not one of my own. He is a traitor to his people and will be killed the next time I see him."

"It seems you have more enemies than you thought. I too am seeking to conquer the planet. And I won't let you or anyone else stop me."

"I'm not planning the earth's enslavement. I'm planning its destruction. I could care less who takes over it in the end. No, I'm merely having fun with my title as Grand General of the Valdorian army. But believe it or not, we _do_ have one thing in common."

"What is that?"

"Sakura Kinomoto."

"The card mistress."

"I believe we can benefit from each other's company, Johann. What do you say?"

Faust stood silently for a minute, studying the alien's pale face before eventually nodding. "What did you have in mind?"

**The USS Nimitz - 00:08:42**

Things on the air carrier were looking worse as the waves of the ocean intensified and rocked the boat back and forth. Darkness had now settled as the alien craft hovering above the body of water continued releasing several components from its chambers.

"What the hell is it doing?" One of the sailors asked.

"I don't know." General Armstrong shook his head. "Yelland, have we managed to bring the power back up?"

"No, sir." The Captain said. "We're only on reserve power and even _that's _going to run out soon."

Suddenly, a spark of bright light emerged in the middle of the control room then swirled around near the corner. The officers onboard stood still and watched as Touya and Yukito materialized from the light wearing their pilot uniforms.

"Hi there." Yuki waved. "How's it going?"

"Who the hell are you!?" The General asked as he pointed a gun at them.

"Whoa!"

"Sir, I'm Lieutenant Touya Kinomoto of the Japanese Air Self Defense Force." Touya saluted the man. "This is Lieutenant Yukito Tsukishiro."

"It's okay, General." Yelland stepped forward. "These are my new transfers. Well they were _supposed_ to be. Where the hell were you?"

"Sorry, sir. We were held up in Tokyo." Touya explained.

"That's what I figured."

"Sir, we're here to warn you of the alien threat that's approaching."

"Oh, you mean _that_ one!?" Yelland sarcastically pointed out the window. "Wow! I thought it was just a weather balloon!"

"We need to get in touch with Washington. These things are standing by to attack and we're losing time."

"We can't." The General butted in. "Power's dead on the ship. We have no radio contact, the controls are bust and we're using up the last of our emergency power."

"Then we're stranded!?" Yuki panicked. "We're gonna die!"

"Yuki, calm down!" Touya pleaded with his friend.

"I don't wan to die here with _you_! You suck!"

"I think we came back too late."

"Yes you did, Lieutenant." Armstrong nodded. "Yes you did."

**Tokyo - 00:01:09**

Bolts of lightning and swirls of teal light began to emerge from the tank hovering above the city. Inside the speeding Scorpion flyer, Sakura and her friends could see the machines beginning to activate.

"The ship…" Sakura said softly.

**00:00:50**

"Everyone move!" Eriol commanded as several magicians took to the transporter.

With every group that stepped onto the platform, Ryou triggered the switch and beamed them to their designated location.

"Let's go, Marvin." Maya said as she and her team stepped onto the platform.

"You guys be careful." Keiichiro said.

In a flash of light, Maya and her team were gone. Pops and his away team were next to board as everyone else remained ready for their departure.

**00:00:34**

Kane walked into the ship's control room and sat down in his chair as the monitors surrounding him displayed the last few seconds of the countdown. The engines were running and the machines were synched as the alien leader grinned.

"And now we wait."

**00:00:25**

Eriol materialized at the top of a building with the rest of his team and checked his watch. He thought for a moment before looking over to the timer probe in his arms then came to a sudden realization.

"Oh no." He gasped.

"What?" Ichigo asked.

**00:00:10**

"The probe."

**00:00:09**

"What about it?"

**00:00:08**

"I'm powering the dimension jumper!" Sakura said as she flipped a few switches. "Hang on!"

The intensity of the machine caused the Scorpion to fly off at a greater speed, forcing Tomoyo and Li back against their seats.

"SAKURAAAAAAAAA!" They screamed.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!" Sakura laughed like a maniac.

**00:00:03**

"Eriol, what's wrong!?" Ichigo chased after Eriol.

**00:00:02**

Eriol ignored the girl and hurried to the end of the roof, preparing to throw the timer probe into the air.

**00:00:01**

"NO!"

"ERIOL!"

**00:00:00**

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!!!!!!!**_

The top of the probe ignited and blasted off into the sky as the rest of the egg shell exploded, destroying everything on the top of the building. The spinning hull of the probe made contact with the alien tanker and emitted a powerful red beam of energy. In no time at all the dark clouds were hit by the ship's beams and formed a powerful whirlpool from within. As one Scorpion went in, several hundred more followed. Time and space were about to be invaded. Zero Hour had begun.


	30. They Invade

**_A/N: Hello everybody! I'm BAAAAAAAAAAAACK!!!!! Sorry for the delay, I've been rather busy lately. But fear not! This story WILL be finished! What, do you think I'd abandon you guys like that? Hells no! And so, after much anticipation I'm sure, I give you..._**

**CHAPTER THIRTY**

The smoke cleared from the body of water as Yue hovered above the Nimitz with his hand extended and glowing a blue haze. Once Yukito realized the tip of the timer probe would go off and explode, he transformed into Yue and managed to dispose of it on time. Captain Yelland and his crew quickly headed onto the deck of the ship, where Yue was making his descent.

"Why did it do that?" The Captain asked.

"Security reasons, one would believe." Yue said.

Just then, a swirling vortex of blue energy enwrapped itself around the air carrier as the crew stood by helplessly. Streaks of lightning and energy passed through the sailors and their ship without causing any harm but causing serious confusion.

"What the hell is going on!?" Touya began to panic.

"I do not know." The moon guardian shook his head.

The spiraling blue energy then emitted a shockwave of static that rattled the Nimitz gently. Everyone fell to the floor and waited the storm out until the odd sphere of electricity vanished into thin air. Once they got up, the skies were clear and not a single alien ship was in sight.

"Is everyone okay?" Armstrong asked the crew.

"What was _that_ all about?" Yelland rubbed his shoulder.

"Well it looks like the aliens are gone."

"But we still don't have any power on the ship."

"The radio's back on, though, sir." One of the sailors said.

"Good." The General nodded. "Contact Washington."

Touya noticed the look on Yue's face. It was the same one he made whenever an idea or theory struck him. Hesitant, Touya approached his friend's alter ego.

"What is it?" He asked.

"It's curious." Yue began. "Earlier, we discovered two timer probes of the same nature landed on separate parts of the world. The one that landed here in Hawaii and the other Meiling found in Hong Kong."

"Okay, go on…"

"Back in the laboratory, Aries mentioned Exitir and his men attempting to alter the past and future."

"Yeah? So?"

"It is possible that these two unique probes were meant to transfer Exitir's men to both locations. One to the past and the other to the future."

"Are you trying to tell us we've gone back in time!?" Armstrong yelled.

Yue simply tilted his head. "Or forward."

"Jesus." Touya sighed. "Things have just gone from bad to worse. I can't imagine how many lives are being taken right now. "

"Indeed. If our mission is to fail, then we might not--"

"Our 'mission'? Yue, we're talking about every human life on the planet! I mean _you're _half human! Haven't you got any God damn feelings about _that_!?"

Yue remained silent for a brief moment, thinking over Touya's words. In the meantime, Captain Yelland and one of his deck officers stood inside the bridge of the ship as they tried to find a working radio frequency.

"Anything?" The captain asked.

"It's very faint." The officer said as he tuned the controls. "But I might be able to pick something up."

"All right, keep working at it. In the meantime I want to send two planes to get a layout of the area. Johnson! McGuire!"

Two pilots came running up to their commanding officer and saluted. Captain Yelland gave the order and in no time at all, two jet fighters stormed off into the clouds. As they approached the harbor, the captain gave one last order.

"Remember, use the radar sensors to take a graph of the area but try not to reveal yourselves!" He told them over the radio. "We don't want to risk altering whatever timeline we're in."

**Tokyo - The Y ear 2040**

Throughout the seemingly post-apocalyptic city streets of Tokyo, hundreds of people ran from the sudden explosions and bursts of energy raining down from the skies. Several of Exitir's warships pounded on the defenseless city as they spiraled out of the temporal vortex created by the timer probes.

Far off in a towering laboratory disguised as a clothing store, billionaire scientist Sylia Stingray stood watch over the several monitors in the subbasement of her building. The destruction occurring from the skies and beyond bewildered her but didn't stop her from contacting her team.

"Priss, this is Sylia." She said through an earpiece. "How far are you?"

"I'm on my way now." Said another woman's voice. "Are Nene and Linna there yet?"

Sylia nodded as the elevator doors behind her slid open. "They're just coming in. We'll be waiting."

"What's going on!?" Eighteen year old Nene Romanova said as she walked into the lab. "The city's under attack and you have us regroup for a meeting instead of taking out those Boomers!?"

"Those aren't Boomers, Nene." Sylia shook her head.

"They're not?"

"Then what are they?" Linna Yamazaki asked with a worried look in her eye. "The AD Police are getting their butts kicked out there!"

"Oh no! Is Leon okay!? I haven't heard from him all day! Maybe he's--"

"Let's not get carried away here." Sylia interrupted Nene's panic attack. "We need to see what it is we're dealing with first."

**Tokyo - Present Day**

The fire and smoke cleared from the roof of the building as Aries, Naru and Keitaro came around. Spinel lowered his energy shield and looked around for Mew Ichigo and Eriol. He spotted the Mew leader lying on the floor next to his motionless master.

"Oh no." He gasped. "Ichigo! Master Eriol!"

Aries crouched before the young girl and helped her up as her eyes slowly opened. "Ichigo? Are you all right?"

"I'm… fine." She said out of breath. "Eriol? Where did he…"

She turned her head and noticed Spinel desperately trying to wake his master. Ichigo hurried over to him and noticed the severe amount of damage on his face. His glasses were cracked, his face slightly burned and bleeding and he showed no signs of breathing.

"Eriol…" Ichigo said under her breath.

"Is he dead?" Naru asked.

Ichigo paused as her mouth trembled. "…Yes."

* * *

Kanaye slowly awoke and found himself in an unfamiliar room. The bed he laid in was soft and warm and the lamp in the corner gave off just the right amount of illumination. After a few seconds, Kanaye saw his old friend Tochigi enter the bedroom carrying a tray.

"Tochigi?" Kanaye said softly. "Is that really you?"

"Of course, sir."

"Where… how did…"

"I found you lying in the middle of the street during the evacuation. You were delirious, shaking with fear and confusion. I decided to bring you back here where it's safe."

"Safe? The city, no--the whole world is under attack. Why haven't you--"

"There's nowhere for me to go, Hiroshi." The young man said with half a smile. "I've no one to go to. I figured if I am to die, I might as well do it in the comfort of my own home. But you're free to go as you like, of course. I simply brought you in to heal your wounds and such."

A great feeling of remorse and redemption suddenly churned within the man as he stood up from the bed and looked out the window.

"I thank you, Tochigi." He said. "For everything. But my work isn't done yet."

"Sir?"

"Do you still have access to the subbasement of Varicorp Labs?"

"Of course, sir."

"I need you take me down there. I have some unfinished business to attend to."

**Hawaii - Somewhere in the Past**

The radio hissed and buzzed for quite a while until a toned down voice suddenly broke through all the feed. The officer immediately picked up on this and raised the volume.

"…_And as the British continue to fend off the relentless German army, our hopes and prayers for a better outcome remain vigilant as ever. The Japanese, meanwhile, continue to demolish all of--"_

The static on the radio killed the remainder of the news broadcast as Yelland and his crew came to a shocking revelation. Touya and Yue exchanged glances and looked outside the deck.

"It appears we have gone _back_ in time." The guardian said. "Which would explain the normal weather and clear skies."

"The date…" Touya started to worry. "What's the exact date?"

"It's hard to tell." The communications officer shrugged. "But from the sound of it, we're in the middle of World War II."

"SIRS!" A navigations officer screamed from the back of the ship as he came running up to the Captain and General. "I think I know exactly when in time we are!"

"What?" The Captain looked at him suspiciously.

"Take a look at this, sir."

The officer held up two photocopied layouts of Pearl Harbor. They both displayed the same features: operational facilities, ships in dock and roads undamaged. The General compared the two pictures but shrugged.

"So what?" Armstrong said. "It's Pearl Harbor."

"You don't understand, sir." The officer took a deep breath. "The copy I'm holding in my right hand was taken from the archives. It shows Pearl Harbor on December 6th, 1941. The day before the Japanese attacked. The copy on my left hand was taken just a few moments ago when we sent our planes out for a radar scan of the area. They're exactly identical."

Yelland eyeballed the sheet. "You mean to tell me that we're one day away from the attack on Pearl Harbor?"

"That's what it looks like, sir."

"Oh shit." Touya said before he fainted.

**_A/N: More coming soon! I PROMISE! _**


	31. They Attack

**CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE**

On the rooftop, Aries could see the fleets of ships scattering above the city and laying waste to everything below. Beams of blue and green light erupted several walls of fire that tore down the walls of Tomoeda.

"Is this all you want, Kane?" Aries closed his eyes and shook his head. "Death and destruction?"

Naru and Keitaro stood by watching the terror around them as Ichigo desperately tried to revive Eriol. She laid the young man on his back and pounded on his chest then breathing into his mouth every few seconds.

"Breathe, Eriol!" She pounded on him some more. "Breathe, damn you!"

"Ichigo…" A heartbroken Spinel placed a paw on the girl's shoulder. "…Let him be. He is at peace now."

"No! He can't die!"

"Ichigo…" Naru stepped forward. "He's dead."

There was a sudden cough as Eriol sat up and dusted himself off. "…No I'm not."

"Eriol!" Mew Ichigo wrapped her arms around him. "You're alive!"

"It would appear so."

"Well that was a close one." Keitaro sighed. "So what do we do now?"

"Do you even have to ask?" Eriol asked with a gleam in his eye.

"…Oh man…" Keitaro groaned.

Moments later, Eriol and his team of magicians took to the streets of Tomoeda and did battle with Exitir's army while Keitaro and Naru stood still before an oncoming fleet of ground troops.

"You two!" The Japanese soldier pointed at the husband and wife. "Get out of the streets now! This city has been officially declared a war zone!"

"Yeah." Naru sighed. "We know."

"Hop on one of those jeeps and they'll take you to safety!"

"Thanks… but no thanks." Naru stood still as her left hand remained behind her back.

"NARU!" Keitaro panicked some more as several explosions could be heard in the distance.

"Listen, you two!" The soldier held his gun firmly. "It's not safe here anymore! The whole city has evacuated!"

"Then why are _we_ here?" Naru countered with a smart-ass reply.

"Listen, lady! I don't have to--" 

_**BZZZZT!**_

The soldier was immediately incinerated by one of the aliens' weapons as a swarm of heavily armored Valdorians took to the skies. Their black pearl armor and infrared helmets targeted a very calm Naru and a panic-stricken Keitaro and readied to fire.

"Yeah, come on…" Naru challenged them under her breath, her hand still tucked away in the back.

"Naru, I love you but you've gone crazy this time!" Keitaro pleaded with her.

When the swarm got close enough to fire down on them, Naru finally pulled out her hand and revealed a Valdorian-class plasma rifle and shot down the entire brigade. The armored aliens exploded in midair and crashed into a nearby tanker truck, forming an even bigger eruption in the city streets of Tomoeda. The Japanese military armed their weapons and spread themselves throughout the city while Naru tossed her husband a weapon similar to her own.

"…Uhh…" He said out of breath from all the shock. "…Where did you get these?"

"Aries." She laughed. "Really, Keitaro, you've got to learn how to ask people for things."

"…Right."

Nearby, Eriol raised his staff and trapped several alien fighter ships in a funnel of clouds and destroyed them with a cage of pure electricity. Spinel Sun pounced on the Scorpion fighters and blasted through the cockpits with his energy gem before finally ripping the alien pilots to shreds with his razor sharp teeth and claws.

"Master!" Spinel called out before knocking an alien unconscious. "We have to protect the Café! If the surface is destroyed, there might be a chance the subbasement will be breached!"

"I'm on it, Spinel!" Eriol nodded as he leapt across several rooftops and pointed his staff towards the small building. "Ichigo, I can use some cover!" 

"No problem!" The Mew leader said as she sliced her way past several aliens. "Just as soon as I finish these guys here!"

"Mew Ichigo!" Aries yelled before he shot down a number of Valdorian soldiers.

"What the?" She looked behind her and gasped. "Wow. How did I miss those guys?"

"You must learn to be careful."

The magic army advanced past the enemy and used their abilities to distract them while Eriol conjured up a spell to protect Café Mew. His staff began to glow as the magic circle surfaced beneath him and when the spell was ready, he aimed straight for the heart of the building. Releasing a powerful beam of energy, the café was then surrounded by a protective hull that was only visible to those with magic abilities.

"There." Eriol sighed. "That ought to do it."

"I don't see anything!" Naru complained as she reloaded her plasma rifle.

"That's the whole point." He sighed. "…I wonder how the others are doing."

**Shanghai**

The city fell under attack just like the rest of the world as the people ran for their lives, screaming at all the destruction before them. The Scorpion flyers blasted everything in sight before a concentrated force of magic forced them to crash land into the river. After a humongous explosion, the remainder of the Scorpions slowed down to find the source of this sudden resistance.

In the middle of the street stood Yelan Li and her four daughters, armed with their swords which glowed with a magical aura. They raised their weapons up high and slipped out an ofuda, ready to strike once more as Meiling, Keroberos and Motoko Aoyama arrived on the scene.

"Orders, Meiling?" Yelan asked.

With a grin she said, "Let's waste these turkeys."

Keroberos inhaled deeply and unleashed a swirling stream of fire that was hot enough to melt through the aliens' armor and burn them alive. Meiling front-flipped her way past the dying Valdorians and picked up one of their weapons, shooting down several Scorpion fighters in the process.

**England**

It was the same in London as Maya protected her home from the Valdorians and their advanced machinery. She dodged several laser blasts and dove into a pileup of cars for protection. There she met up with her husband Marvin and the rest of her team taking cover from the attack.

"Aw jeez…" Marvin wiped the sweat from his brow. "This isn't looking good for us."

"Not yet it isn't." Maya said as she stood up, wand at the ready.

"Maya, wait!"

With a quick flick of her wand, Maya deflected one of the aliens' blasts and pointed her wooden instrument at a whole row of the armored menaces.

"Hello, boys." She said with a grin. "_**Crumble**_!"

At the sound of her command, the wand emitted a powerful white light that spread throughout the aliens and forced them to crumble up and dissolve into nothing but dust. More Scorpion flyers took to the skies and released another rainstorm of energy fire but Mew Zakuro managed to deflect several of the blasts with her holo-whip.

"Way to piss them off, Maya!" She griped.

"Sorry." Maya chuckled nervously.

**Exitir's Ship**

The alien leader surveyed the destruction across the globe with his various monitors on the bridge of his ship. With a sinister grin, he flipped a control switch on his chair and activated the speakers.

"This is your general speaking." He addressed his army. "In light of the recent appearances by those of the magic world, I have hired some extra help to further insure our victory. Show them the same courtesy you would your fellow Valdorians. For when this planet is deplete of all human life, we will be the ones to bask in tremendous glory."

Faust materialized beside the alien leader and nodded. "Well said, Kane."

"And now, Johann. Are your men ready to fight."

"As always."

"And your children?"

"Waiting to be released from their prison just as you promised."

"Very well then."

**The Lab**

Ryou, Keiichiro and a handful of volunteers were busy in the subbasement, using Aries' machinery to help produce a number of Scorpion flyers to use against Exitir's army. The Scorpions were built the same only altered in appearance. The shiny black exterior was replaced with a more friendly and civilized silver chrome shielding.

"How many is that, Keiichiro?" Ryou asked as he lifted his welding mask.

"This one makes it a dozen." The inventor sighed.

"Amazing." Ryou said as he held the Valdorian welding tool in his hand. "Alien technology so advanced, it only takes two hours just to make a dozen fighter jets."

"Maybe we should save the admiring for later?" Fujitaka suggested as he wiped the sweat off his brow with a towel. "How much more, Ryou?"

"As much as we need."

"Hey, wait a minute!" A very drunken Terada stumbled into the lab. "…Wait a minute here! Just wait! Wait! Wait!… What good are these things going to do us if any of us can't even fly them! I mean… shhhh-sure, that alien guy can dooooo it but… _blurp_! …What about ush?"

"You're drunk, Terada." Fujitaka smelled the man's breath.

"I am not… _Not! _NOT NOT! … Hungry! Okay? I'm thirsty, though!"

_**THUD!**_

And with that, Terada passed out on the floor, enabling Ryou and the others to continue working on the Scorpion flyers.

"Hey, wait a minute." Ryou suddenly paused. "… If we sent everyone across the globe already, then who's taking care of France?"

There was a long silence as everyone thought for a moment but after a while, they just shrugged and decided it was best not to care.

**France**

Paris was practically a hole in the ground by the time the first wave of Scorpion fighters had passed by. At the first sight of the alien species, the French army immediately surrendered as the underground foreign legion smuggled out their best wines and cheeses. But that wasn't enough to fool the Valdorian army as they caught the legion in the act and destroyed everything they held most dear to them. Surrender was pointless.

As several survivors fled the buildings, one of the French smugglers ran up to the army general with a burning white flag in his hand.

"Holy sheet, you guys!" He said in his thick French accent. "Ze aliens! Zey are everywhere!"

"Oh no!" The general gasped.

"But I have some bad news and some good news! Ze bad news is zey have drunken all our wine and melted all our cheese!"

"NO!"

"But ze good news is we can make le nachos!"

"Hooray! Le nachos!" 

"HOORAY!" The French army cheered.


	32. A World In Darkness

**CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO**

**Tokyo - 2040**

As the already torn apart city crumbled even further down to the ground by the Valdorian attacks, an observer on a red sports cycle rushed through all the destruction. Desperate to make contact with her associates, she checked her earpiece again but there was no response. 

"Damn." The rider said as she revved the engine to her cycle and dodged a falling building. 

With a sharp swerve to the right, the woman in red leather emitted several sparks by pressing her cycle against the rough concrete. This was enough to alert the alien flyers and send them towards her. Unwilling to yield, the lady in red made another hard right and barely made it through another collapse of buildings. As she eluded her pursuers, she sped past Tokyo Tower and noticed a strange funnel forming above it. She watched as the alien ships scattered from the eye of the storm and continued to lay waste to everything in sight. 

Shaking her head, the rider finally made it to her destination and quickly drove through an opening in the back alley of the building. Inside the laboratory, Priscilla "Priss" Asagiri made her grand entrance with her motorcycle helmet in her hand and her guitar strapped to her back. The 20 year old flipped back her thick brown hair and approached the rest of her teammates. 

"I assume you've taken a good look at what's happening." Sylia Stingray asked as she ran a file on the computer screen before her. 

"The city's under attack. The AD Police and the military have their hands full. People are dying. Yeah." The young woman scoffed. "I've seen it all right." 

"Sylia thinks these aren't Boomers causing all the damage!" Nene Romanova shrieked. 

"They're not. They're something else. The attacks seem to be coming from the sky. There are hundreds of thousands of them wasting everything in sight. We may be next." 

"Not if I can help it." Sylia shook her head as she pulled up a graph of the city. "There. Just above Tokyo Tower." 

"What?" Linna Yamazaki leaned in towards the screen. "I don't see anything."

"That pattern emitting in the center of the graph. That's where they're coming from."

"From the tower?"

"No." Priss shook her head. "It's a portal _above _the tower. That's where they're all coming from."

"You've seen them?"

"Oh yeah."

"All right, girls." Sylia switched the computer off. "Let's suit up." 

"Are you crazy!?" Nene protested. "We don't know what we're dealing with here!"

"Maybe not. But we have a duty to protect the city." She then looked at her 2nd in command. "Priss?"

The young woman just grinned. "What else am I gonna do on a Saturday night?" 

**Hawaii - 1941**

After a few hours, Touya finally came around. He saw the Captain, Yukito and a couple of yeomen staring right at him with almost amused looks on their faces. 

"Oh, good God…" He sighed. "I had the weirdest dream. I dreamt aliens were attacking the earth and we somehow traveled to Hawaii back in the year 1941, a day _before_ the attack on Pearl Harbor!" 

"Uhh… Touya?" Yukito chuckled nervously. "That wasn't a dream." 

"…It wasn't."

"I'm afraid not, son." General Armstrong shook his head. 

"Oh… okay." Touya nodded understandingly, bottling up his emotions. "…Right… excuse me…"

Touya got up on his feet again and dusted himself off before he went onto the deck of the Nimitz. His left hand wiped the invisible dust off the railing as he looked up into the heavens. The sky looked the same to him no matter what year he was in but he knew deep down inside, everything he had experienced was not a dream. After a while, he clenched his fists and finally released all his frustration in one swear: 

"**SSSSHHHHIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIITTTT!!**"

As soon as he finished his rant, Touya took a moment to catch his breath while the rest of the crew came to his side. The young man held his hand back and nodded to assure them he was okay now. 

"S-sorry…" He gasped for air. "I just… I just don't believe any of this…"

"Believe it, Touya." Yuki looked down. "We're really in the past." 

After a moment of silence, everyone looked up to the sky as they heard a low humming noise coming from the distance. Crewman on the ship were ordered to get a better look and when they did, they were surprised to see a couple of Japanese air fighters headed their way. 

"Sir?" A crewman said. "If my eyes don't deceive me, I'd say those are Japanese class A6M Zeros." 

"They're what?" Touya did a double-take. 

"Are they friendly?" Captain Yelland asked. 

General Armstrong scoffed. "Yeah, I'm sure a Japanese airplane came all the way over here just to say hi and _not _wreck the harbor." 

"Orders, sir?" The crewman asked. 

Captain Yelland thought for a moment before reaching a decision. "Send two of our Hornets out. Play with them but _don't_ destroy them. Understand me?"

"Yes, sir." 

"Now what do we do?" Touya asked as he sat at a radar station. 

**Dallas, Texas - Present Day**

Several magicians crowded the streets and gave Rally's cherished Mustang Cobra some much needed protection from the aliens as she maniacally drove it through a wall of armored Valdorians. Rally kept one hand on the wheel and another outside her window, shooting down whatever crossed her path as May left a trail of explosives for her enemies to set off. 

"Jimmy, this plan isn't working!" Rally shouted as she continued driving around. "We keep killing them but more and more keep coming out of nowhere!" 

"Oh, Lord…" Jimmy spread himself against the backseat of the car. "I didn't think it would be _this_ hard!" 

"Hey, is that Dallas Stadium?" May looked out the windshield. 

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!  
**_

"…Well it _was_." Jimmy shook his head. 

As the car swerved away from the fire, several people fled from the demolished building, including a suspicious old man in a suit and tie. 

"Owens!? Romo!?" The disoriented old man called out amongst the crowds of frightened people. "…Hey! Where the hell did y'all run off to!?" 

Suddenly, the old man bumped into a huge, bald black man, who for some reason, broke down in tears. The old man wiped the blood from his brow and took a good look at whoever it was he bumped into. 

"Huh?" He coughed. "Oh, it's you! What happened!?" 

"It's not fair…" The bald man cried as he looked down. "…They gonna blame him but it's not fair…."

"What in Sam Hell are you talking about?" 

"That's my quarterback… that's my teammate…" 

"HUH!?" 

_**BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!**_

As the fighting continued around them, Rally, May and Jimmy just sat there in the car with a befuddled look on their faces.

"What…"

"…The Hell…"

"…Was that?" 

**Kenya, Africa**

"All of y'all best get in that bunker and stay there!" Kitsune shouted to all the evacuees as she helped them to safety. "Mutsumi, wake your ass up and gimme a hand over here!" 

"Huh? What!?" Mutsumi suddenly awoke to the sound of gunfire. "Is it lunchtime already? What day is it? What's going on?" 

A man on fire suddenly ran past the young woman, causing her to smile nervously and blush from embarrassment. "Oh yeah. The end of the world… silly me!" 

Pops and several magicians barricaded a hotel as its survivors were gathered up in UN trucks and vans to be taken to safety. Ruby Moon, meanwhile, flew above them all, taking out several of the aliens in the process. 

"Yeah! Take that! And that!" She yelled. "Haha! _Now _you know you've been in a fight!"

On the surface, the African native twirled his rattle doll around and held it out firmly as his eyes began to glow pure white. 

"_Yaombe, Yaombe! Cimala_!" He chanted in his native tongue. "Cast out your souls at once!" 

In an instant, the souls of the Valdorian fighters were ripped from their bodies and shattered into nothing more but pieces of glass. Kitsune and Mutsumi exchanged glances in awe and smiled. 

"Way to go, old timer!" Kitsune winked. 

"I'm sleepy." Mutsumi said before passing out yet again. 

"Oh, for the love of…"

**Moscow, Russia**

Mew Pudding led a group of magicians through the halls of St. Basil's Cathedral and exchanged blows with the aliens while Ms. Mizuki followed right behind. She slowly and calmly overviewed the situation before she sensed a squad of armored Valdorians running up behind her. 

"Ms. Mizuki!" Pudding called out to her. "Behind you!" 

"I know." She calmly said. "Don't worry about me." 

"Time to die, Earthling…" The squad leader said as he aimed his plasma rifle at her. 

"What? 'Time to die, Earthling'? What are you, a retard or something?" 

The aliens scoffed at the woman as they all cocked their rifles but Kaho stood absolutely still. Once the aliens were ready to shoot, Kaho held her hand out and made a fist. This action caused her telekinesis to kick in and crush the aliens dead in their armor until they were nothing more but floating pieces of scrap metal. As another group of Valdorians came running, Kaho slowly shifted the pieces around with a swift movement of her arm and looked directly at the second alien leader. Her fist still clenched and the pieces still floating, Kaho winked at the aliens and opened her hand. The aliens froze in place as they watched and anticipated her next move. 

"Bye-bye." She said as the sharp pieces of metal shot out towards the aliens and impaled them all.

Kaho just smiled and walked over the dead bodies as she met with Shinobu and Kaolla, giving them each a high-five. 

"Yeah, I know." Kaho grinned. "I'm a badass." 

**Exitir's Ship**

The Valdorian General remained seated in his chair as he switched on the intercom. "This is your General speaking. Deploy our reinforcements. We've let these puny humans survive long enough. It's time to end this." 

Lights on the ship suddenly turned red, alerting all the crewmen to take their positions. Throughout the globe, bolts of lightning hit the ground and caused major cracks along the center. Soon portals from the Demon Realm began opening up and releasing several demons and Blood Ring Priests to assist the Valdorian army. The magicians were now even more outnumbered than before. 

**Tokyo**

Eriol and Mew Ichigo combined their powers to shoot down a squad of Scorpion flyers when the portal suddenly opened before them. As Spinel Sun, Aries, Naru and Keitaro ran up to them, they too could see what was happening. 

"Oh please don't tell me…" Spinel shook his head. 

"I'm afraid it is, Spinel…" Eriol gulped. 

"What the hell's going on?" Ichigo asked. 

Naru shrieked as she saw the tail of a gray-skinned demon waving around as the rest of its body stepped out of the portal. Its grotesque fangs and muscular body were enough to frighten Keitaro as well as he held his wife firmly. 

"We're not gonna live, are we?" He asked her. 

"I guess not." Naru sighed. 

"It's not over." Eriol shook his head. "Until Sakura and the others return, we have a job to do! We fight until we die! Now who's with me!?" 

Eriol suddenly turned around to find that everyone had ditched him and headed in the opposite direction. Rolling his eyes, Eriol decided to follow. "Hang on! Wait for me!" 

As these events unfolded throughout the planet, hope for the future was now lost. Little did they know, the future itself was about to cross over and help them save the present.


	33. INTERMISSION

_**A/N: And now, boys and girls, we're gonna take a short break from the story in a little something I call…**_

**I N T E R M I S S I O N**

_(Imagine a small London television studio where a nightly news program airs live every night at 9. The host, a man in a black suit sits at his desk and faces the camera. He speaks in a casual, well-pronounced British accent.)_

**Host: **"Hello and good evening. Tonight on _'Ethel the Frog' _we discuss the 4th addition to the _'Next Crusade' _storyline entitled _'Zero Hour'_. Its author, the mysterious, elusive and downright bizarre MASC has agreed to briefly halt the weekly updating process for readers to catch up and reflect on the story so far. In the last few stories he's written, we've seen Sakura develop a new ability to merge with her cards, we've seen her die and come back to life as a villain and now in this 4th installment, she's battling aliens, demons and bloodthirsty occultists with a help of a few friends. Yes, this story has now officially become a crossover and the characters guest starring are from the following titles:

_**LOVE HINA - (Naru Narusegawa-Urashima, Keitaro Urashima, Mitsune "Kitsune" Konno, Mutsumi Otohime, Motoko Aoyama, Shinobu Maehara, Kaolla Su, Haruka Urashima, Professor Seta & Sara McDougal)**_

_**TOKYO MEW MEW - (Mews Ichigo Momomiya, Mint Aizawa, Lettuce Midorikawa, Pudding Fong, Zakuro Fujiwara; Professors Ryou Shirogane & Keiichiro Akasaka)**_

_**BUBBLEGUM CRISIS: TOKYO 2040 - (The Knight Sabers: Priscilla "Priss" Asagiri, Sylia Stingray, Linna Yamazaki & Nene Romanova)**_

_**THE GUNSMITH CATS - (Rally Vincent & "Minnie" May Hopkins)**_

**Host: **"But what of the _other_ anime all-stars that _weren't _featured in this story? Tonight we'll get to speak with them and hear their thoughts as to why they didn't make the final cut. Please join me in welcoming tonight's guests:

_**Sailor Moon - **__(She's in her mid-40s, hair is all shabby, her teeth are crooked and yellow, she's pregnant and holding a lit cigarette; She speaks in a thick cockney accent; Just picture her as an old hag from a Monty Python sketch)_

_**Goku - **__(Also in his mid-40s, extremely overweight, triple-chinned in fact, his hair is all mussed up and he sits at a small table stuffing his face with all the food he can reach; Also speaks in a thick cockney accent but is hard to understand most of the time because of all the food in his mouth)_

_**Naruto - **__(A complete and utter retard with a piece of bone sticking from the back of his head, he speaks mostly in gibberish and is often treated like a child, sitting on a high chair and wearing a bib)_

_**Astro Boy - **__(Grandfather of all anime, the robot boy is now an old geezer and has a thick grey beard and often dozes off in the middle of a sentence)_

_**Hello Kitty - **__(She's friendly and chirpy as ever but with subtle homicidal tendencies; Kind of like a Martha Stewart with a hidden violent streak)_

_**Vash the Stampede - **__(Chronically depressed and sporting a new black jacket instead of the old red one with raven hair to match; Often talks about killing himself as he sits on a stool, keeping to himself most of the time)_

_**Pikachu - **__(Is now working full-time as a pimp, sporting a matching purple and white fedora and jacket with shiny black pimp cane with gold ball; No longer speaks in one word sentences)_

**Host: **"Good evening. Thank you for joining us."

**SM: **"My pleasure, love. It's truly an honor being on this wonderful show!"

**Host: **"Thank you. Now there's been a lot of controversy surrounding this latest fan fiction. It started with an already complicated storyline involving aliens and demons but people think this crossover business is just making things worse. And adding fuel to the fire is the fact that legendary anime characters such as yourselves have been snubbed on the cutting room floor. Your thoughts?"

**Goku: **"There'sh shum lovely grapesh in 'ere!"

_(Goku pigs out on a nearby fruit bowl, downing everything in sight)_

**SM: **"Goku, you pig! Use a bloody napkin!"

**Host: **"Sailor Moon, let's start with you. You were pretty big back in your day. Why do you think you were snubbed?"

**SM: **"Well to be honest, I've never been a fan of this whole crossover business. I mean the scouts and I always had enough trouble getting along with each other as it is and after our show ended way back when, I decided to leave that all behind me."

**Host: **"Really?"

**SM: **"Oh, yes! I retired, settled down with Goku here and joined the local church choir. Life's been good, I've got to admit. Not a complaint since then."

**Host: **"So you married Goku then?"

**SM: **"Yes, he's a bit of a handful sometimes but I've got to hand it to him. He's a natural leader and a loving husband, bless him."

**Goku: **"Pork roasht!"

_(Goku belches and rips an entire roast apart with his hands)_

**Host: **"Astro Boy, you are what's considered the 'Grandfather of anime'. Why do you think you weren't asked to participate?"

**AB: **"Huh!?"

**Host: **"I said, why do you think you weren't--"

**AB: **"Huh!?"

_(Astro Boy leans in with his hand over his ear, trying to hear what the host is saying)_

**AB: **"Speak up, son! I can't hear ya! Yer talking to an octogenarian for Christ's sake!"

**Host: **"Oh for the love of--Vash! Vash, why do you think you were snubbed?"

**Vash: **"I don't care. Sometimes I think the companies do this to mock us. Make us feel big one moment then bring us down the next. It's like they _want_ me to kill myself. And you know what? I just might."

**Hello Kitty: **"Oh, looks like someone's all gray skies and rain clouds! Hey, Mister Grumpy! Let's turn that frown upside down and bake some delicious cookies shaped like me!"

**Host: **"Ms. Kitty, do you think you being snubbed was justified?"

**HK: **"Oh, shoot! That doesn't bother me at all! What matters is that I have my health, my friends to lean on and my job with the CIA to hunt down and kill terrorists execution style with a deadly accuracy! Isn't that what it's all about?"

**Host: **"Uhh, yes… perhaps. Naruto?"

**Naruto: **"Der, I'm a rocketship! Zooooooom! Crash! Hahahahahaaaa!"

_(Naruto hops up and down in his booster seat while slobbering all over the place)_

**AB: **"Consarn it! You damned kids today and your… uhh…"

_(Astro Boy falls asleep mid-sentence)_

**Host: **"Oh, dear. Um, Pikachu?"

_(Pikachu is on his cell phone)_

**Host: **"Pikachu?"

**Pikachu: **"Yeah, so like I was sayin' earlier… what's up wit dem hoes tonight? We solid or what? Man, I don't know!"

**Host: **"Pikachu?"

**Pikachu: **"Man, WHAT IS IT!? Can't you see I'm on the muthafuckin' phone right now!?"

_(The Pokémon speaks into his phone one last time before hanging up)_

**Pikachu: **"Hey, look. I holla at you later, ai'ght? Yeah… all right, playa. Now then… what do _you_ want!?"

**Host: **"Well I just wanted to hear your thoughts on this '_Zero Hour_' crisis and--"

**Pikachu: **"Man, I don't give a good God damn _who's_ writin' this shit! So long as my hoes keep making me money, I'll be good!"

**HK: **"Hey, everybody! I've got an idea! Let's make a homemade bomb using some Jell-O, rock salt and 30 gallons of sulfuric acid! Huh? What do you say!?"

_(Astro Boy suddenly wakes up alarmed)_

**AB: **"Pies! We made pies! And, uhh… where am I?"

**Naruto: **"I pooped my pants! Yippee!"

**Vash: **"Life is an overturned piss pot. I'm about to say goodbye to it all. I've got no reason to live now."

**Host: **"If we can get back on topic--"

**Vash: **"What's the use? We're all gonna die."

**Host: **"Okay, I can see this interview is going nowhere…"

**SM: **"And another thing! I'm not ashamed of those OVAs I did back in the 80s! I mean what was I supposed to do? A girl's got to eat, y'know!"

**Host: **"I'm sorry, what?"

**SM: **"After I did '_Anime Fantasy Dream Girls 7_', I vowed never to take me top off again unless there was an Oscar nod to back it up. Looks like I missed out a few years too late, eh!? Hahahahaha!!"

**Goku: **"Yeah, but I remember when she wuz with that Tuxedo Mashk bloke, she wuz willin' to do _anything_ fer him!"

**SM: **"Ooh, you lie! Quit dwellin' on me old boyfriends!"

**Goku: **"She was always snoggin' on 'im and--"

**SM: **"WE WAS NOT SNOGGIN'!"

**Goku: **"Them great big--"

**SM: **"We was actin', we wasn't snoggin'!"

**Goku: **"That's shum of the loudest, wettest snoggin' _I'd_ ever heard in me life!"

**SM: **"You bastard, Goku! You just can't let it go, can you!?"

**Host: **"Moon! Goku! Please! You're married for God's sake!"

**HK: **"Uh-oh! Does somebody need a time-out?"

_(With a chirpy smile, Hello Kitty pulls out a nine millimeter)_

**HK: **"Here, Moon! We ladies need to stick together! Why don't you waste that lame husband of yours and when you're done, I'll use the body to make stocking stuffers for this Christmas?"

**Vash: **"I wish _I_ could be a stocking stuffer…"

**AB: **"In my day, we didn't use to branch off into teams! We always fought our enemies single-handedly without the use of magic, or enhanced DNA or guns!"

**SM: **"Quite right, Astro! These new teams like Tokyo Mew Mew and whatnot may seem popular now but their time in the spotlight will soon fade!"

_(The girls of Magical Do Re Mi enter the studio)_

**Doremi: **"It's true! Look what happened to us! We were popular one day and the next! Whoosh! Our careers went straight out the window!"

**SM: **"Who the bloody hell are _you_!?"

**Doremi: **"Don't you know who I am? I'm Doremi Harukaze from '_Ojamajo Doremi_', also known as '_Magical Do Re Mi_' in the States."

**Goku: **"Eh?"

**SM: **"Get the bloody hell outta here! You were _never _popular!"

**Doremi: **"Oh… bye-bye!"

_(The girls leave)_

**Host: **"Well that was odd."

_(Pikachu looks around the corner of the studio)_

**Pikachu: **"Yo, Misty! Bitch! You better get on that corner and make me some money! Damn!"

_**SQUISH!**_

**Pikachu: **"Aw damn, baby! I done stepped on Hamtaro!"

_(Pikachus peels the hamster from his shoe and sets him down on the floor)_

**Pikachu: **"My bad, boo."

**Host: **"Any last words before we end this brief intermission and return to the story?"

**SM: **"Legalize it!"

**Goku: **"Jolly good stuffing, mate!"

**Naruto: **"Derp!"

**AB: **"…ZzzzZ…"

**Vash: **"When I die, the world will finally weep for me."

**HK: **"Remember to floss daily and if you see someone you don't like, just shoot him in the head!"

**Pikachu: **"Yo, I got it! '_Jiggly's Puffs_'! Up fo' grabs 'round the corner on Main Street and Parks Avenue! Hell yeah! Pika Pika baby! Deuces!"

**Host: **"Thank you for joining us on '_Ethel the Frog_'. We now return to the story already in progress…"


	34. Total Happiness

_**The Story So Far:  
**_  
Doug and Bob are metropolitan policemen with a difference. Doug likes  
nothing more than slipping into little cocktail frocks, while Bob bouffants  
his hair for a night on duty. Still, as the art immace, no one gives their  
last names.

**_BOOOOM!!_**

The _**Real**_ Story So Far:

Pucky Reginald Vas Deferens is a nuclear scientist in love with mafia boss  
Enrico Marx, who is himself married to Conchito Macbeth, a lively belly-dancer  
at the Belgian disco whose manager, Burly Ivan Crapp, has a naked daughter  
Janice engaged to J.J. Spinman, New York private detective, employed by  
elegant Laura Herron to trace the missing million-pound bidet that Hitler  
gave to Eva Brown as a bar mitzvah present during a state visit to Crufts, and  
which remained hidden until a World Cup referee, Horse Jenkenson, was found  
hanged in a New Jersey tenement with the plans of a Russian secret weapon  
partially tatooed on his elbow.

In Brisbon, the Brain brothers, Nicky and Vance, torture a Mayfair  
psychologist, who reveals to Dora Brain in a tender and emotional death scene  
that his hair is not his own.

Meanwhile, the Kent Touring Eleven have trapped husky Matilda Tritt on a  
sticky near Hastings, and she reveals all before enforcing the follow army.

Peter Niesewand and Cyril Garfunkel arrive just in time with the Welsh Police,  
and the Harry Orchestra, and proceed to sing a love song which allows Dr.  
Indira McNorton just enough time to cross the alps into Geneva, where he  
meets Kon Rapp, a kung fu fanatic and cat lover, who frivilously shoots him,  
but not before introducing him to lively intelligent Norweigan widow Lanny  
Krimt, who shows him her inner thighs, where he finds the address of a good  
French restaurant, and unexpectedly meets Gabriello Machismo, an ex-Korean  
plastic surgeon whose frankly blond assistant Sally Lesbitt is now the  
half-brother of a distant cousin of Ray Vorn Ding-ding-a-dong, the Eurovision  
song, and owner of the million-pound bidet given by Hitler to Eva Brown as a  
bar mitzvah present during a state visit to Crufts, and which remained hidden,  
etc. etc. etc.

This they now do.

Meanwhile, Harold and Victor Medway III discover a newfound love for each  
other in an flashback near Devon, where they meet up with Doug and Bob, the  
metropolitan policemen who suprisingly turn out to be in this film at all, who  
kill everyone, and live happily ever after.

**_And now we return to... ZERO HOUR!!_**

**CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR**

The room was spinning. Though her eyes were wrapped around a thick black blindfold, she could feel it in her gut that the room was indeed spinning. She breathed heavily and moved her head about as she heard children's laughter emanating from the distance. She spun around some more and soon the laughter grew louder, close enough for her to hear exactly how many children there were. By the next wave of giggling, she could tell there were at least five children by her side.

"What is this?" Sakura panicked. "Where am I?"

"SURPRISE!" The children cheered.

In an instant, the blindfold came off and soon Sakura found herself being hugged and kissed by the five young children. They were so happy to see her and couldn't contain their love for her any longer but Sakura just sat there taking their tokens of admiration with a confused smile.

"Merry Christmas, mama!" A young girl, maybe 8 years old said.

"Merry Christmas!" Said a young boy, around the same age.

"We love you, mother!" Another young boy, aged 6 exclaimed as he hugged her.

"Did you see the tree?" Said yet another young boy, also aged 6.

"I helped decorate it!" A little girl around 4 years old jumped with joy.

"We love you, mother!" They all said in unison.

"I… I love too…" Sakura chuckled, taken a back.

"All right, kids! Let your mother relax!" Li said as he entered the living room.

Sakura could see she was sitting on the couch, in the living room of a very large house that had been decorated for the holidays. She examined the Christmas tree standing tall in the middle of the living room and the presents neatly piled underneath it. The fireplace was going and the windows were all covered with frost as the snow outside continued to fall. Confused, Sakura got up from her seat and wrapped her arms around Li, who lovingly embraced her back.

"Li?" She asked him. "Is this real?"

"Is what real?" He looked at her strangely.

"This… all this… This house, the tree, the… The children. Is it all real?"

"Well of course it is. Why wouldn't it be?"

"I… I don't know, I…"

"Oh, you must have drunken some of your mom's spice punch again. Sakura, you know it always plays with your head!"

"My mother? What?"

Just then, Sakura was taken aback by what she saw next. Coming out of the kitchen was Nadeshiko, Sakura's seemingly dead mother. The dark-haired woman smiled at her daughter and lovingly ran her hand down the young woman's brown locks.

"Are you okay, dear?" The woman asked. "You look a bit peaky. Dinner will be ready soon."

"Mom?" Sakura was now at a loss for words as she found her bottom lip trembling.

"What is it, dear?" Nadeshiko gave her daughter the same look Li did.

"…You're… alive."

"Well of course I am."

A tear fell down Sakura's face as she took a moment to stare deeply into her mother's eyes before she gave her a tight hug. She rested her head on her mother's warm chest and inhaled her scent, feeling safe and secure. After a while, they broke apart and Fujitaka came inside the house with snow covered on the shoulders of his coat.

"Hi everybody!" He greeted them. "Man, it's coming down hard now! I'm glad I made it back in time!"

"Hello dear!" Nadeshiko greeted her husband with a kiss.

"Dad…" Sakura smiled.

Just then, Sonomi came running out of the kitchen in a grease stained apron and a whisk in her hand. "Nadeshiko, are you gonna help me cook dinner or what!?"

"Oh, I'm sorry." The woman grinned. "I'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs me."

"Mom!" Sakura stopped her in her tracks.

"Yes, dear?"

"Do… do you need any help?"

"No, thank you." She smiled warmly. "You just sit down and relax."

Sakura sighed and sat back down on the couch as Touya and Yukito came downstairs carrying several presents in their hands.

"All right, everybody!" Touya called out to them. "I got more presents here! Now who wants them?"

"Me! Me! I do! I do!" The children all exclaimed in unison as they waited for the two men to distribute the gifts.

"Now, kids! Remember to thank your uncle Touya and Yukito!" Li chuckled.

"Thank you, Uncle Touya!" The children said. "Thank you, Mr. Girly-Face!"

"Hey!" Yukito griped. "What the hell, man!?"

"Hehehe." Touya giggled. "You suck."

Sakura couldn't help but laugh as she continued looking around her surroundings. Was she dreaming all this? She couldn't be. It all seemed so real to her. There was nothing to indicate this as an hallucination so it must have been real. But what of everything that happened before? The aliens. The demons. Tokyo Mew Mew and the Gunsmith Cats? What happened to them? Now she found herself wondering if there was something she was supposed to do.

"Are you sure you're okay?" Li asked as he kissed her forehead. "You seem really out of it."

"Li…" Sakura put her hands over his. "How long have we been married?"

"Ten years. Why?"

"And this house. Is it ours?"

"Well of course it is."

"What do I do?"

"What do you do? Sakura, is this some kind of game?"

"Uhh… yeah. Yeah, it's a game."

"Oh. Well you're a teacher. Remember?"

"Yeah. And you're… uhh… you're…"

"I'm a chef."

"Chef. Right."

"Yeah. Tomoyo owns a clothing company, Eriol runs a museum, your brother and Yukito are retired from the air force."

"But what about… I mean… do you remember…"

"Remember what?"

"…The cards."

"Cards?"

"Kero, Yue, Ruby and Spinel! Do you remember--"

"Hey, Sakura!" Kero suddenly popped up in front of her. "Where's my Christmas pudding!?"

"Unfortunately, I _do_ remember." Li sweat-dropped.

"Oh…" Sakura sighed. "Then I guess it happened after all."

"Of course it happened. We've been retired for almost twenty years now."

"Li…" Sakura got up again. "That day with the aliens. What happened? How did we defeat them?"

"Aliens?"

"You remember. The Valdorians. They came from outer space, Aries tried to help us, we met with Tokyo Mew Mew and a bunch of others and we tried to stop them from--"

"Sakura, none of that ever happened. What are you talking about?"

"What?"

"What aliens?"

"Kero, _you_ remember right?"

"All I remember is that you promised me a Christmas pudding last week and now that it's Christmas, I don't see no God damn pudding!" Kero pounded his fist. "Now where is it, woman!?"

"Kero, I'm being serious!"

"So am I! I'm starving!"

"Sakura," Li started. "Tokyo Mew Mew have been out of action for as long as we have. They disbanded a while back and--"

"But it seemed so real." She interrupted.

"Your dreams have a tendency to do that."

"I'm starting to doubt if _this_ is real."

"But it is, Sakura."

Frustrated, Sakura got up and wandered around the house as the children played with their new toys they got for Christmas. She watched their happy faces and kneeled before her youngest daughter as she approached her with a doll in hand.

"Mommy," The little girl said. "Thank you for the dolly. She's very beautiful."

The little girl kissed Sakura on the cheek and went off to play with her doll. Sakura stood back up and laughed from all the joy she was suddenly feeling inside her.

"These are my children…" She said to herself happily. "…These are _my_ children…"

"Well of course they are, silly." Tomoyo said as she set up the dinner table. "Whose else would they be?"

"Tomoyo." Sakura hugged her friend. "Where's Eriol?"

"Right here." The young man said as he came downstairs, adjusting his tie. "Is something wrong?"

Sakura grinned as she took another look at her children. "No. Everything's fine."

The doorbell rang, catching Sakura by surprise. Tomoyo stopped what she was doing and headed for the door. "I'll get it!"

Tomoyo neatly wiped her hands on the apron she wore and opened the door, surprised to see some familiar faces. "Ichigo! Masaya!"

"Hey, Tomoyo!" Ichigo, the former leader of the Mews, cheerfully hugged her friend as she and her husband walked inside the house. "Wow, everything looks great! I love it!"

"Thanks! Sit down! Relax!"

Sakura walked by and smiled at her friend. "Ichigo."

"Sakura!" Ichigo wasted no time in hugging her. "How are you?"

"I'm doing good. How are you?"

"Oh, just fine."

"She's being modest." Masaya Aoyama, Ichigo's longtime boyfriend turned husband said with a smile. "Tell her the truth, Ichigo."

"Okay." She sighed. "I'm pregnant!"

"You are!?" Sakura smiled. "Congratulations!"

Amongst all the excitement, Suppi came flying in from the study room and looked around. "What!? What is it!? What happened!? Someone die!?"

"No, Suppi." Ichigo laughed. "I'm gonna be a mother!"

"Oh…" The cat rolled his eyes unimpressed. "Is that all?"

"Come on!" Tomoyo grabbed Ichigo by the hand. "Let's go in the kitchen tell them the news!"

"Okay!"

"We're still waiting for Chiharu and the others to stop by!"

"Cool!"

As everyone went about their business, Sakura looked outside the window and watched the snow fall. She put her hand against the window and closed her eyes, trying to summon her magic. She could feel it within her but for some reason nothing happened.

"This isn't right." Sakura finally concluded. "This isn't real."


	35. A Whole New World

_**A/N: Yeah, I know. It's been a while since my last update. Sorry 'bout that. But I'm not gonna bail out on this thing. It's been over a year since I uploaded this story and damn it, I intend to finish it! More to come soon, I PROMISE!!**_

**CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE**

"It's as real as you want it to be." Clow Reed said as he startled Sakura.

Sakura gasped and turned around to see her mentor, sitting casually at the dinner table. She looked around and gave him another look, making sure her eyes weren't playing tricks on her and walked towards him.

"Clow Reed?" She asked.

"Hello, Sakura."

"What are you doing here? I thought you were…"

"Dead?" He smiled. "Yes, I am. Just think of me as an _echo _of the man you know."

"An echo?"

"A part of himself he left behind."

"So you've been here before? This… realm?"

"The temporal Nexus. Yes I have."

"When?"

"A very long time ago."

"You dealt with the Valdorians before?"

"No. It doesn't take alien technology or a rocket scientist to travel between dimensions, Sakura."

"What's going on?" Sakura pulled up a chair and sat across from him. "Why is my mother alive?"

"You'd rather her be dead still?"

"No, it's not that it's just…" Sakura got up again and examined the house. "…I've never had a home like this. Or children. I mean, Li and I are supposed to get married soon but we've never even… uhh…"

"Never even what?"

"Umm… well, y'know…" Sakura then moved her hands around awkwardly as her face turned red. "…_you know.._."

"Ah, yes. I see."

"But still…" Sakura turned her attention towards the children as they happily played underneath the tree. "…There they are. _My_ children."

"Yes." The man smiled as he stood behind his protégé. "They are."

"Clow…" Sakura refocused on the matter. "Can I leave the Nexus?"

"Where would you go?"

"I have to find three objects from various dimensions. I have to use them in order to stop Exitir and his army. How can I leave?"

"Simple. All you have to do is convince your friends this is all an illusion."

"But how?"

"Use your head."

She turned around to see Li sitting on the couch, playing with his children rather lovingly much to her surprise and joy. Her face saddened though when she realized it was all an illusion and that she had to escape this false reality at once. She walked towards the small group and took a seat next to her husband, picking up her youngest daughter.

"Hi, sweetie…" She said warmly. "Mommy has to talk to daddy for a minute. You go and play with your brothers and sisters."

"Okay mommy!" The little girl exclaimed.

As the children ran off, Li smiled and turned to his wife, kissing her on the cheek. "What's up?"

"Li…" She took him by the hands. "Look at me."

"Okay."

"Can you tell me if any of this is real?"

"What do you mean?"

"All of this. The house, the children, my mother--is any of it real?"

"Of course it is."

"But does it _seem _real to you?"

"Sakura, you've been acting really weird. Are you sure you don't--"

"Li, look at me! This really _isn't_ our house! Those _aren't _our children! And my mother is _dead_."

"Sakura--"

"Think, Li!"

"I…"

"Remember. Try to remember why we came here."

"…Here?"

"This Nexus. We're in an artificial reality. Somewhere in time and space, we're floating inside this cosmic dream world. Remember our mission."

"Our mission?"

"Hey, what's going on here?" Tomoyo stepped in the room, wiping her hands on an apron.

"Tomoyo!" Sakura got up and faced her. "You realize something is wrong here, don't you?"

"Like what?"

"This place. You know that it's not real. That we're in some temporal--"

"Temporal Nexus?" She finished her sentence. "Oh, thank God! I was wondering when you were gonna catch on!"

"What!?" Sakura was taken aback. "You mean you knew!?"

"Of course I did!"

"And you didn't say anything!?"

"Well I was kind of skeptical at first but when I saw the kiddies, I knew right away. I mean let's face it, you and Li haven't even--"

"Oh, be quiet!" They turned to Li. "Li, come on! Snap out of it!"

"Snap out of what? You two are acting weird!"

"Li, think for a minute. Please! You know we're on a very tight schedule here. Right now the earth is being attacked. We're the only ones who can weaken the Valdorians' defenses."

"Defenses?"

"Aliens, Li. You remember? I know you do."

Li got up from his seat and walked around the house, concentrating hard on what Sakura had told him. He looked at the Christmas tree standing before him and peered into one of the crystal ornaments as it reflected a shimmering yellow light. Then he turned to see the adults cooking and laughing and having a good time in the kitchen, seeming to have difficulty placing Mrs. Kinomoto. Finally, he looked at the children as they ran around playing with each other and suddenly got an attack of reality.

"Wait a minute!" He turned to Sakura. "I can't be a dad! You can't be a mom! We haven't even--"

"Okay, I get it!" Sakura interrupted him. "For the love of God, I get it already! Enough!"

"…Oh my God…" Li sat back down, puzzled by everything.

An annoyed Sakura returned to her seat as well, massaging her temples. "Jesus… Why the hell does it always come back to that?"

Tomoyo just grinned. "Well maybe if you--"

"Shh!" She shushed her friend. "Are you okay, Li?"

"Yeah…" He nodded. "Yeah, I'm fine. I'm just glad we're all on the same page now."

"Hey, do you guys feel something?" Tomoyo looked around rather alarmed.

"Like what?"

Suddenly, the room was smothered with a burning white light that blinded the three. They shielded their eyes with their arms and got up from the sofa, turning around to see the source of the bright light. A faint rumble soon followed that caused them to drop to the floor with their eyes closed and hands tucked over their heads. Sakura managed to activate the Shield and protected everybody from whatever dangers that were now surrounding them. As the rumbling stopped, the light eventually faded away.

"What the hell?" Li opened his eyes and got up.

"Where are we?" Tomoyo asked as she took Li's hand.

"I…" Sakura got up on her own. "… I don't know."

They stared out across the vacant fields as they burned away into nothingness. Lakes of fire spread across the dead grass as a tower of black smoke herded into the dark sky. Sakura looked up and could see the polluted bubble that was standing above them as a few searchlights came into view.

"Those lights…" Tomoyo pointed out. "…That has to be bad."

"It is." Sakura nodded as she slipped out a card. "Get ready…"

The lights grew brighter as the ships emanating them came closer. Then closer. Then closer. When suddenly, a massive explosion formed in the ranks that brought them all down one by one. Sakura stepped back and activated the Fly card to get a closer look at what was happening. She zoomed through the thick walls of smoke and watched as the Valdorian tankers sunk into a brown ocean that was swimming with dead bodies.

"Oh God…" She gasped.

She then noticed a hooded stranger running through the forest in the corner of her eye. She immediately thought one thing, "Kanaye."

Sakura turned her direction towards the dead wood and began pursuit. The hooded figure looked up and flung an ofuda towards her but Sakura was too quick for him. She deflected the magic slip with the Shield and began surrounding her opponent with the Earth, raising several pillars of rock from the ground.

"You can't run, Kanaye!" She hollered as she landed on the ground. "I don't know how you got here but I'm going to--"

_**BZZZZT!!  
**_

Sakura found herself thrown across the floor by an electric shock that came from nowhere. She looked up and saw the hooded figure remove his cloak and reveal his face much to her horror.

"Li!?" She gasped.

"Sakura!?" The young man stepped back. "Then who…"

"She's an imposter!" A young woman said as she approached this new Li.

Sakura was now confused at the two people she was looking at. One was identical in every way to her beloved fiancé and the other was identical to herself. This Sakura, however, was taller, more mature and had longer hair. She carried a shiny silver blade stained with Valdorian blood and pointed it at her neck while her Li stood by her side, wearing a black vest and his tattered green cloak.

"What do you think, Li?" The alternate Sakura said.

"She could be one of them." He said, reaching for something in his pocket.

"One of what? The aliens?" Sakura panicked. "No, I'm not! I'm not an alien!"

"We didn't say alien, did we?" The 2nd Sakura leaned forward with her blade. "You just gave yourself away!"

"Oh don't be stupid! That's the only thing out here! There's no way in hell Faust could have transferred the demons to another realm in space!"

"She knows about the demons, too."

"Oh for the love of…"

"Reveal yourself, demon!"

"I'm not a demon! Or an alien! Or an ex-millionaire gone cuckoo!"

"Who?"

"Long story. Look! I'm on _your_ side!"

"Prove it!"

"My name is Sakura Kinomoto!"

"So is mine!"

"My mother was Nedeshiko Kinomoto! She died when--"

"When I was three! Keep going!"

"I used to be captain of the--"

"Cheerleading squad! Me too! Continue!"

"I'm a little shy sometimes! Uhh, I forget things on occasion! Oh, uhh, I have a weird birthmark on my scalp that you can see if I shave my head! Oh! Oh! I'm one hell of a cook!"

S and S 2 looked at each other for a few seconds then shrugged. The tall Sakura lowered her sword and nodded approvingly. "Okay. One last thing, though…"

"What?" She sighed.

"Show me the Star Key!" She raised her weapon again.

"I can't!"

"Why not?"

"I don't have it!"

"What do you mean you don't have it!?"

"It was destroyed!"

"By who!?"

"Faust!"

"Who the hell is Faust?"

"A demon warlord!"

"That's impossible!" Li-2 stepped in. "The key is indestructible!"

"Yeah, okay!" Sakura sarcastically rolled her eyes. "Sure it is!"

"Then how are you able to summon magic without the staff?" Her blade cornered Sakura against a dead tree.

"Well, you see… hey, wait a minute! I don't have to take this crap from you!"

Sakura snapped her fingers and activated the Wood card, binding her alternate counterpart and her significant other with the vines that were still alive.

"Impossible…" Sakura-2 shook her head. "Li!"

"I'm on it!" He strained as he dug deeper in his pocket._ "Key of the Comet!" _

"Say what?" Sakura raised an eyebrow.

"_Reveal your true form before me! I, Syaoran, command you under our contract. Release!"_

Sakura tilted her head and dropped her jaw in utter confusion as she saw the alternate version of her fiancé release an elongated green staff with a crystal clear orb in place of the usual star with wings. Li broke free from his binds and twirled the staff around, freeing his Sakura and pointing his weapon at his opponent.

"What… the fuck." Sakura was now out of it.

"There's no doubt about your abilities." Li-2 said as he lowered his staff. "You _are_ the master of the cards."

"_Mistress_!" Both Sakuras blurted out much to their amusement.

"Sorry. So what now? Have you come to help us?"

"I think so." Sakura shrugged. "We need to find my friends."

"Your friends?"

"My versions of Li and Tomoyo."

"Tomoyo?" Sakura-2 felt a lump in her throat. "Your Tomoyo is… alive?"

"Well… yeah. I mean what happened to…" She then realized where she was. "Oh no. It all makes sense now. The dark atmosphere. Li with the staff. Tomoyo… dead."

"What is it?"

"I should have seen it from the start."

"Seen what?"

"I made it. I'm in an alternate universe."


	36. Descent

**CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX**

There they sat around a campfire as the night sky descended upon them. But from all the smoke, fire and pollution that was there already, they couldn't tell much of a difference. After the awkward introductions, two Sakuras, two Syaorans and one very disturbed Tomoyo settled in for the night and discussed their current situation.

"So in this reality," Sakura started. "_Your_ reality… Li won Final Judgment?"

"That's right." Her counterpart nodded. "I was the first to face Yue. But he was just too quick for me. When it was Li's turn, he was trapped in a block of ice, waiting for Yue to erase our memories and shake the balance of our reality. But he fought through it and beat Yue's spell."

"It was one of the hardest things I ever did." He said softly. "But in the end, I won the battle and was proclaimed the master of the Clow cards, which I later converted into Comet Cards."

There was a brief silence among them. Tomoyo had been given the most dreadful news earlier and thought about it over and over in her head as she poked the bonfire with a stick when suddenly…

"So I'm dead?" Tomoyo asked out of the blue, almost teary-eyed.

"Almost everyone is dead." Li-2 sighed. "Kaho was killed in an explosion. Terada was driven to madness. He strangled Takashi and killed the rest of our friends."

"Well he's bound to do that at some point." Sakura said with a gleam.

"Then he hung himself."

"That too. If the alcohol doesn't get him first."

"Nakuru and Spinel were atomized by a stray beam of energy from one of the ships." Sakura-2 added. "Them and a few children they were trying to protect."

"What about… _me_?" Tomoyo asked, almost afraid to know.

"You were…" She paused for a moment, unwilling to go on.

"Sakura, please."

"You found Eriol's dead body hanging outside one of the ships. He had been mutilated and shot in the head and you grew furious."

"Oh my God…"

"In a blind rage, you stormed in a carrier tank and shot your way through several of the aliens. Li and I tried to save you in time but you were gunned down brutally just as the ship was crashing into the ravine."

"…I'm… I'm sorry."

"What about the others?" Sakura asked. "Tokyo Mew Mew? The army? What--"

"What army, Sakura?" Li-2 looked puzzled.

"My magic army. Maya, Marvin, Pops--"

"I don't know who you're talking about."

"Well what about Tokyo Mew Mew?"

"The girls answered our distress call and helped us out as much as they could. But in the end, they too suffered the same fate as our friends."

"What about Kero and Yue?" Sakura finally asked, despite her objections toward it.

"We… think they might still be alive." Her counterpart answered. "They were taken by a couple of tankers during our last battle. I don't think they're dead… _yet_."

"Then…" Sakura looked over to Li and Tomoyo, who were unsure of what to say. "…We'll help you."

"Help us? How?"

"The only way we know how. Crash the gates and start kicking some ass!"

Li-2 thought for a moment and nodded with a grin. "We might have a chance."

"What?" His Sakura looked up at him with concern. "Li, you're not serious are you? Tomoyo died storming through security. We can't take that same risk!"

"But if we don't, what chance does the fabric of time and space stand of surviving? We have to do something, Sakura."

"They outnumber us. Several hundred against four."

"Excuse me." Tomoyo stood up. "But there's _five_ of us."

"No." She shook her head. "Not after the way I lost _my_ Tomoyo. I'm not going to see you die the same way."

"Oh don't worry. I'm pretty sure there's a chance I'll be cut open, blown to bits in a chamber or probably even trip over my own feet and fall down the garbage chute."

"Is that supposed to be some kind of sick joke?"

"Are you laughing?"

"Does it look like I'm laughing?"

"Not really."

"Then what does that tell you?"

"You should lighten up more?" She then turned to her favorite couple. "Jesus, it's like over here, _Sakura's_ the one with a stick up her ass and _Li's_ the cheery optimist."

"Anyways…" Li rolled his eyes. "… With our magic combined, we might actually stand a chance against them. But if we're going to form a raid on the tanker, we need to know its precise location."

"No problem." Sakura-2 said. "It should be well beyond this forest, hovering above a swamp."

"You know…" Sakura paced around, thinking to herself. "…There's a good chance what we need is on that ship."

"Those items Aries told you about?" Li walked over to her. "Do you really think so?"

"It's worth a look."

"So what do we do?"

* * *

The smooth, shiny and black exterior of the Valdorian tank towered above the bubbling swamp in the middle of the dead forest. The armed guardsmen patrolling the area passed the murky river over and over again, occasionally shooting the odd swamp animal out of pure boredom. They remained completely oblivious, however, to the five figures that crept up behind them and brought them down instantly. With a snap of her fingers, Sakura activated the Fire and set two of the guards on fire while Li-2 ran his silver blade through the necks of three others. Sakura-2 and Li followed their lead and immobilized their own set of adversaries while Tomoyo snuck up behind a wandering Valdorian, breaking his neck instantly.

"Wow." She said. "That was intense."

"Let's go…" Sakura led them in.

A massive explosion set the alarms to go off as the small fleet of aliens in black armor hurried down the corridors of the ship with their firearms ready. Once they saw the small group walk past the entrance, already littered with the bodies of dead guardsmen, they opened fire but to no avail. Sakura simply lifted her hand and protected everyone with the magic hull of the Shield as they walked on unaffected. Combining their magic as well as their efforts, Sakura and Card Captor Li used the magic of their cards to strike down the aliens with ease while continuing their walk through the ship's halls.

As they passed a group of slain Valdorians, a stray one tried to limp his way to safety but Tomoyo met him with a boot to his face. "Take that, you stupid retarded alien!"

"Tomoyo!" Both Sakura's were surprised at their friend's attitude.

"What? They killed me! Don't I deserve to avenge myself?"

"And you_ taught _her how to fight?" Li-2 asked his counterpart.

"A little too well, I think." He shrugged.

Once they turned one of the damaged corners of the ship, they were startled by a blood-curdling roar that caused them to take one step back. Soon they could hear knocking against the walls and the sound of plasma fire beings shot into the air. Both Sakuras knew exactly who it was.

"Kero." They said.

* * *

Inside the small room, the Valdorians tasered a defenseless Keroberos with their weapons as the guardian beast remained clamped to a table with his wings restrained and mouth muzzled to prevent him from firing on them. His roars managed to break through his tightly closed mouth but sadly, his fiery breath could not. He groaned from the pain and fought back the tears while his alien captors continued to torture him, rioting with laughter.

"Not so tough, are you!?"

"Stupid animal!"

"Humans and their pets!"

"Magical beast? Ha!"

"This one's about to crack!"

Suddenly, the door exploded and Sakura and her Li stormed into the room, knocking out the alien soldiers while the realm's two protectors freed their sun guardian. Sakura-2 broke through the alien locks and removed the muzzle from her beloved Kero, wrapping her arms around his thick neck and broke down crying.

"Kero…" She cried with joy. "…Forgive me. I should have arrived sooner."

"Better late than never…" He purred, a tear rolling down his single eye.

"Kero…" She noticed the black patch over his right eye. "What happened to your eye?"

"They… tortured us… They didn't even ask for information… they just… kept at it and laughed and laughed and… and Yue."

"What about Yue?"

"He wouldn't back down. They kept coming at him and he fought back. He made them mad so they restrained him… they blocked off his powers and they… mutilated him… they ripped his wings apart and they beat him senseless…"

"Oh, God…" She stood up to leave the room.

"Sakura! Don't!"

"I have to get Yue!"

She ran to the back of the tank and dodged some of the guard's energy blasts while her Li followed in pursuit, using his cards to thwart them off. She saw the isolation chamber and stood back while Li tore through the door with his sword. When she stepped in, the room was dark and cold with a single light illuminating an arched figure sitting in the corner. Slowly she walked towards him, hoping he was still alive.

"Yue? Is that you?"

"…Sakura?"

"Yes, Yue. It's me. I'm here to free you…"

"It's too late for me now. Leave while you still can…"

"No, Yue. I can't… I need you. I've already set Kero free, I can--"

"LEAVE!"

"Yue, I'm not leaving! I can save you!"

"SAVE ME!? LOOK AT ME!"

The lights switched on to reveal Yue sitting on a pile of blood and feathers with shards of bone sticking from his back and scattered along the floor. Sakura gasped at the sight and held onto Li for support as he too witnessed the awful sight before him. Yue's face was cut and bruised and his hair was messy but he could still see their reaction, looking down in shame and defeat.

"So you see, Sakura? Master Syaoran? I am no longer of any use to you. Leave me to die while there is still time to escape…"

The others arrived and were also taken aback by Yue's gruesome appearance. Sakura in particular, who had formed a strong bond with the Yue in her realm, was moved to tears by his dreadful condition. Kero-2 slowly stepped in and looked away with a heavy sigh.

"No…" Sakura balled her fist. "…This can't happen."

"Sakura?" Li put his hand on her shoulder. "Our Yue's okay."

"But what about theirs? He's… he's been hurt." Her sadness immediately turned into rage. "…Kero's been hurt. And the majority of our friends here are dead."

"Sakura?" Tomoyo was now worried. "What are you going on about?"

"I'm going to make them pay for what they've done." She said to her counterparts as the remainder of the ship's crew walked in, readying their weapons. "I'm going to get this Exitir person and rip his heart out."

She then turned to the armed Valdorians, hiding in their black armor. "And I'm going to start with you!"

The aliens shot her but missed entirely as she walked through the plasma blasts via the Through and reached for their weapons. Using her mental abilities, she shattered the guns and grabbed a Valdorian by the neck, breaking it instantly and tossing him aside. She reached for another alien and set him ablaze using the Fire, watching him burn to death in a raging inferno then unleashed the Shot to blast through the remaining few, finding herself soaked with their purple insides. She stood there amongst the dead aliens, dripping with their mauve colored blood and sighed as her friends looked at her with the utmost horror and surprise.


End file.
